Daughter of a Tigress 2
by Silver Wolf1
Summary: Decided to do a sequel to the first one. No, I am not going to do another dick move chapter like I did in the last one.
1. Chapter 1: A New Start

Ok. As with the last one, the characters and places in this fanfic aren't mine. They belong to DC Comics. I'm using them in this fanfic because I like Young Justice. Secondly, I don't care for some of the DC heroes that much, so there will be some occasional bashing of different ones in an attempt to keep this story light. Special thanks to Reina Grayson for helping me edit this. Anyway, I hope you like the story. Email any and all comments (even burns) to Silver_Howler1_99

Daughter of a Tigress 2

By Silver Wolf1

Chapter One

A New Start...

Kara sighed as she sat in a doctor's office. Prior to the bell ringing at her school, a woman in a business suit and two officers had arrived and needed her to come with them. As it stood, she just wanted to go home.

'He is going to be so mad at me,' she thought looking at the clock. The sound of the knob turning brought her attention to the door.

"Hi there," a woman in a business attire said as she entered the room. "Can I go home?" she asked watching her close the door.

"Well, that's what I'm here to talk to you about," the woman said pulling a chair over and sitting across from her, "My name is Melissa Rose. I work for the Department of Child Services here in Palo Alto. Do you know why you're here?"

Kara slowly shook her head saying, "I just want to go home."

"Kara, the people you know as your parents was arrested earlier today," Melissa said calmly, "Because of this; you are going to be placed with either a family member or in foster care."

"But I don't have any other family." Kara said as her eyes widened.

"I was afraid of that." Melissa said before the door burst open.

"Get away from her." Artemis said as her and a man carrying a brief case entered the room.

"Excuse me, who are you?" Melissa asked standing up.

"This will explain everything," the man said handing Melissa a piece of paper, "I have already sent the paper work to your office and boss explaining everything that is going on; but also a court order stating this case is closed effective immediately. As well as a judicial restraining order against your department; no one in your office is allowed to come within one thousand feet of them unless I am present."

"Are you ok, Kara?" Artemis asked checking on the little girl.

"I'm ok, Ms. Crock," Kara said looking at her teacher, "Why are you here?"

"Because I know the man that was pretending to be your father," Artemis said pulling the chair over and sitting in it, "And I am not going to let him hurt you ever again."

"Thank you," Kara said quietly as she smiled a little, "But where am I going to go?"

"You're going with me, Kara," Artemis said with a gentle smile, "Is that ok?"

Kara slowly nodded as she started to smile.

"I think you might like my place." Artemis said as the two of them waited on the doctor.

"Do you have a dog?" Kara asked.

"He's names Brucely," Artemis said with a slight nod, "Is that a problem?"

"My parents never let me have pets." Kara said looking down at the floor.

"Well, I think you'll like my dog." Artemis said.

"Excuse me," Melissa said looking over at the two, "What kind of dog do you have?"

"What type she has is none of your concern," the man said stepping in front of her, "The case was closed as of the instant my client stepped through the door. You don't believe me, call your boss."

"I was asking because I was thinking about getting one," Melissa said stepping up to the man, "For your information, I have been off the clock since I received a text from my boss about the paper you handed me five minutes before you got here. Now if you don't mind, I would at least like someone's opinion on dogs."

"Pitbull," Artemis said smiling.

All eyes turned to face the blonde as Melissa asked, "You have a what?"

"A Pitbull," Artemis repeated calmly, "I have a Pitbull named Brucely and I trust him with my life."

"That is all I wanted to know." Melissa said before leaving the room.

"Can we leave yet?" Kara asked after a few seconds.

"As soon as I talk to the doctor," Artemis said looking at her, "You getting hungry?"

"A little." the young girl said before her stomach growled.

"We'll stop and get something on the way home." Artemis said with a laugh in her voice as a man in a white coat entered the room.

"Sorry about the wait. Last one took longer than expected." the doctor asked.

"That's fine," Artemis said looking at him, "So is she going to be ok?"

"Are you her guardian?" he asked.

"As of today yes." she replied.

"Ok then," he said before clearing is throat, "Other than being up to date on all her immunizations; she's slightly underweight for her age and height, she's malnourished, and hasn't had a bath in a while."

"You can blame the people she was with previously," Artemis said not sounding too happy, "Is there anything else I should know?"

"Just that she's allergic to carrots and I'd like to see her in one month to see how she's doing." he said before handing her a piece of paper.

"I'll get the appointment set up before we leave," Artemis said looking at the paper, "The bill?"

"The receipt; the bills been taken care of. Enjoy the rest of your day." he said before leaving.

"What does malnourished mean?" Kara asked after a few seconds.

"It means you weren't eating right," Artemis said putting the paper away, "You ready to go home?"

"Please." Kara said looking at her teacher.

Artemis stood up and held her hand out as she said, "Then let's go, and call me Artemis."

"Ok Artemis." the young girl said taking her teacher's hand in hers. After setting up the next appointment, the two got into Artemis's car and drove to a nearby store.

"Why are we stopping here?" Kara asked as they pulled into the parking lot.

"I need to get some groceries for dinner and unless you want to go back to where you were living, it's also to get you some new clothes." Artemis said parking her car.

"I never want to go back there." Kara said sounding almost fearful.

Artemis leaned over and gently gave the girl a hug as she said, "You are never going back there. I promise."

Kara slowly reached up and wrapped her arms around her teacher as she closed her eyes. "I believe you." the young girl whispered as a tear slid down her cheek.

Artemis leaned back after a few seconds and wiped the tear away as she said, "No more tears, ok?"

"Ok," Kara said as she started to smile. They went inside and started looking around. After picking up what they needed, they went back to the car and drove home.

"We sure got a lot." Kara said looking in the back seat and what they had purchased.

"A good part of that is yours," Artemis said glancing at her, "So what would you like for dinner?"

"No Chinese." Kara said looking out the front of the car.

'Not surprising.' Artemis thought as she pulled up to her place.

"Then how about chicken and macaroni and cheese?" she asked putting the car in park.

"That sounds yummy," Kara said looking at the apartment, "Do you live here?"

"The upper floor," Artemis answered as they got out, "I will warn you though, Brucely will want to sniff you."

"Will it hurt?" Kara asked.

"No more than a hug," Artemis said grabbing a couple of bags from the back seat. As they walked up to the front door, they heard a laugh from just inside the door.

"What was that?" Kara asked stopping on the one step.

"That would be my sister," Artemis said looking back at the young girl, "Don't worry, she won't hurt you."

Kara took a few more steps and hide behind her teacher as she opened the door.

"Do you always break into my place?" Artemis asked as entered the room followed closely by the young girl.

"Only if it pertains to letting you know about our dad going to jail." Jade said looking at her sister.

"Oh I already know." Artemis said putting a couple of bags in a chair.

"And just how do you know that?" Jade asked a little surprised.

"I'm the one that turned him in." Artemis said carrying the rest to the kitchen.

"Well that's not surprising," Jade said getting out of her chair, "But you do realize that he wants me to break him out, right?"

Artemis stepped up to her sister and quietly said, "Break him out and I will be an only child the instant I find you."

Jade took an involuntary step backwards as she said, "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't."

Artemis pointed towards the door as she said, "Jade, I would like you to meet the reason I turned him in; her name's Kara."

Jade turned to see the little girl standing next to the front door.

"H-hi Jade." Kara said shyly with a slight wave.

"Hey Kara, well aren't you precious….but if he's the reason for your appearance then he gets what he deserves." Jade said before looking at her sister, "If that man breaks out and comes near her, you better kill him or I will."

"You're the assassin, so be my guest," Artemis said before walking over to the front door, "Go ahead and have a seat, Kara. I'll go get the rest of the stuff from the car."

"No, I will," Jade said placing a hand on her sisters shoulder, "You go fix that girl something to eat, Alice."

"Thanks Jade." Artemis said before heading back to the kitchen.

"Who were you two talking about?" Kara asked sitting on the couch.

"Our father," Artemis said putting away the groceries.

"Don't you like him?" Kara asked.

Artemis closed the fridge door and sighed before saying, "He quit being my father a long time ago, so no."

"Plus she wants nothing to do with what he calls the family business," Jade said as she entered the room carrying a few bags, "Granted I think making him mad is the family business now."

"Making him mad is easy," Artemis said before she started cooking, "So where's my dog, Jade?"

"He's watching over your niece as she sleeps in your bedroom," her sister replied putting the bags on the kitchen table, "What's in these?"

"Some clothes Artemis got me." Kara said quietly.

"And some bath stuff," Artemis said looking at the girl, "Speaking of which. Kara, why don't you go ahead and take a bath while I fix dinner?"

"I'll show her where the bathroom is and give her a hand." Jade said grabbing two of the bags.

"Ok, and have fun getting my sister wet, Kara." Artemis said with a smile.

"Don't even." Jade said as the two left the room. As Artemis continued cooking, she couldn't help but smile as she heard a laugh from down the hall.

"You're going to have your hands full with her, Alice." Jade said as she walked back in after a few minutes.

"I know," Artemis said leaning against the counter, "I have a feeling I don't want to know what all he and the person he was with did to her."

"They were recruiting for the Shadows." Jade said sitting at the table.

"Good thing I stopped him." Artemis said closing her eyes as she remembered those days.

"Why did you help her?" Jade asked after a few minutes of silence.

"It's a long story," Artemis said before turning back to the stove, "Can you make sure she's ok?"

"You're telling me that story later." Jade said before going to check on the young girl.


	2. Chapter Two: Red

Chapter Two

Red...

During her time as a hero, Artemis had thought she had seen everything. From aliens to an actual brain in a weird robotic body; she would admit there wasn't much that surprised her anymore. Then there was Kara. Artemis knew that the young girl that now resided in her guest room wouldn't be like the one in her dream, but to see that the girl's hair was as red as Wally's was something she didn't expect. Even when Monday rolled around, her class didn't believe it was the same girl.

But as time went on, Artemis soon realized that Kara's hair color wasn't the only difference. While she loved to read as much as the one from the dream; this Kara didn't have the eidetic memory the other had. Yet even with these differences, Artemis still loved the girl regardless. For the former archer, life couldn't be more perfect. As a chilly Saturday in October rolled around, she woke to the sound of her front door opening.

"Don't you dare leave the living room." she thought slowly sitting up.

"I take it we woke you up." a familiar voice said in her head.

"I will be out in a few," Artemis thought as she stretched, "You know where the coffee is, Conner, and do NOT let M'gann leave the living room."

"Will do." a male voice said mentally. After getting a quick shower and dressed, Artemis went into the living room to find the two she expected please one other.

"Hey Babs, what are you doing here?" she asked seeing her redheaded friend.

"The results and I need to talk to you about something." Barbara said holding up a manila envelope.

"Hold that thought," Artemis said before getting a mug from a cupboard, "Anyone else wants some coffee?"

"Please." Conner said with a slight yawn.

"Add me to that list if you would." Barbara said sitting at the kitchen table.

Artemis grabbed two more mugs as they heard someone say, "Morning, Artemis."

"Morning Kara," Artemis said looking over at the young girl, "You're up early."

"I heard you talking to someone." Kara said quietly as she looked at the people in the room.

"It's ok, Kara, they're my friends," Artemis said before turning to introduce them, "That's Conner, his girlfriend, M'gann, and Barbara. Guys, I'd like you to meet Kara."

Kara gave a slight wave as she said, "Hi."

"Believe it or not, Kara, Barbara was the one that helped make it so you could live here." Artemis said placing the mugs on the counter.

"Thank you." the young girl said as she looked at her mother's friend with a slight smile.

"You're welcome, Kara," Barbara said smiling, "So what's it like living with Artemis?"

"It's different from where I was." Kara said a little nervously.

"Hey Kara, why don't you go get dressed and we'll go out for breakfast?" Artemis said

"Ok," Kara said before heading back to her room.

"Actually, we have breakfast covered." M'gann said before a redheaded teen appeared in the room via a gust of wind holding multiple bags.

"Who's hungry?" the teen asked holding the bags up.

"Bart," Artemis said closing her eyes, "What did I tell you about knocking?"

"Sorry, hands were full." the speedster said placing the bags on the table.

"And there is a Martian in the room." she said before pouring three cups of coffee.

"She has you there." Barbara said looking at him.

"Then again, he has a tendency to not think when it involves food." Artemis said before two of the mugs floated over to the table.

"And you haven't had your morning coffee yet." he said watching the blonde take a drink of her mug.

"Not yet," she said before walking over to the table, "So what all did you get?"

"I got a breakfast sampler, two of the pancake platters, a thing of sausage gravy and biscuits for you," he said taking each order out of the bags, "Plus a kids breakfast platter; not sure why though."

"And the last bag is yours, right?" M'gann asked.

"Yup." he said before picking it up.

"Thanks Bart and you better knock next time." Artemis said sitting in a chair.

"Will do, later." he said before disappearing in a gust of wind.

"Artemis," Kara said as she walked into the kitchen, "I can't find my shoes."

"They're by the front door, and breakfast is here." Artemis replied looking at the young girl.

"It is?" Kara asked a little surprised.

"Another of your mom's friends dropped it off," M'gann said as she started to pass out the containers.

"I wish Artemis was my mom," Kara said walking over to the table.

"Where is your mother, Kara?" Conner asked as he helped pass out the food.

"I think I can answer that question." Barbara said before taking a sip of her coffee.

"We can talk shop later," Artemis said before getting up to get another chair, "Right now, I'm pretty sure a certain person is hungry."

After everyone had eaten, Barbara pulled the envelope out and handed it to her friend saying, "I think this is something you've been waiting on."

"What's that?" Kara asked looking at it.

"I asked Barbara to try and find your actual parents." Artemis said opening the envelope.

"You did?" Kara asked looking at the table.

"Don't worry, Kara," Barbara said with a smile, "You'll like what I found."

"What exactly did you find?" Conner asked as Artemis took out the paper and read it.

"A few years ago, a couple from National City went to a paternity clinic to see if they could help them have a baby," Barbara explained, "With a little help, they had Kara. Everything was fine up until they moved to Palo Alto last year. Thing is, after the arrest of the couple that Kara was with, the police went back to the couple's old home and found their remains in the buried in the backyard."

"You mean my parents are dead?" Kara asked looking up at the redhead with tears in her eyes.

"Not quite," Barbara said looking at the girl, "I did a little digging and found the names of the people that helped the couple have you."

"Another couple helped them?" Kara asked a little puzzled.

"Think of it like this," Conner said leaning over, "Every person is like the Lego sets you see in a store. When assembled a certain way, they make a person. A baby is created when a couple combines extra pieces they have to make a new set. But there are some that don't have those pieces."

"Like how David let AJ borrow some of his to make a plane?" Kara asked.

"Exactly," Barbara answered, "But the ones that make us up are a very special kind of Legos. Your parents borrowed some of those pieces from another couple in order to get you. Understand?"

"I think so," Kara said after a few seconds, "But what does that have to do with me?"

"Everything," Barbara stated, "You see, I checked the records of the place that helped your parents make you and found the lady that donated some of her Legos; your biological mother."

"You mean I have a mom?" Kara asked as her eyes widened.

Barbara nodded before saying, "And you've been living with her since the end of August."

Kara looked at Artemis as tears started to form in her eyes as she asked, "You're my mom?"

Artemis placed the paper on the table as she looked at the little girl said, "According to a test that the hospital did. I am your biological mother. Is that ok?" Tears started to fall freely down Kara's face as she hugged the blonde tightly.

"I think that's a yes." M'gann said as she watched her friend return the hug.

"That's not the only thing I found out," Barbara said after a few minutes, "I was able to find a copy of Kara's birth certificate."

"When's her birthday; how old is she going to be?" Artemis asked as her and Kara looked at the redhead.

"She turns seven on October twenty-eighth." Barbara replied smiling.

"When's that?" Kara asked wiping her tears away.

"Next Saturday." Artemis said gently stroking her daughter's hair.

"That's just in time for the Flash Museum Halloween Party in Central City." M'gann said sounding happy.

"Oh no," Artemis said shaking her head, "I am not going through that again."

"Oh come on, you had fun last year." M'gann whined.

"Last year, I didn't have a daughter," Artemis said pointing at a jar on the counter, "And you whined….."

"I got it." Conner said pulling his wallet out.

"What did happen last year?" Barbara asked not completely sure what they were talking about.

"Still recovering from the accident and way too many kids hyped up on sugar." Artemis said as Conner place a five in a jar.

"You were in an accident?" Kara asked looking at her mother.

"It happened last year, but I'm fine now." Artemis said gently brushing her daughter's hair.

"And the museum is asking that all candy be consumed after leaving the event." M'gann said smiling.

"And I don't think going to a Halloween party is a good idea for them right now." Conner said sitting down.

"Why do you say that, Con?" Barbara asked as all eyes looked at him.

"Just meeting the three of us, Kara seemed like she was scared as much as she was shy," he said calmly, "How do you think she is going to react to crowd that was as big, if not bigger than last year? No offense, Kara."

"It's ok," the young girl said leaning her head against Artemis's shoulder, "How many people showed up last year?"

"A little over two thousand." he replied.

Kara started to shake slightly as she quietly said, "T-t-t-two thousand?"

"Which is why I agree with Conner," Artemis said hugging her daughter, "I don't think us going this year would be a good idea."

"Sorry to say this, but I agree with Artemis and Conner on this one," Barbara said looking at M'gann, "It's not a good idea for Kara to go to something like that with as timid as she is right now."

"Plus it is Kara's first birthday with her mom." Conner said before placing a hand on his girlfriend's.

"You're right," M'gann said with a slight smile, "And I guess throwing a party for Kara is out of the question, right?"

"At least this year," Artemis said.

After talking for a little bit longer, Conner, M'gann and Barbara headed out as they had some other plans.


	3. Chapter Three: Birthday

Chapter Three

Birthday...

Now that she looked back on it, Artemis almost wished she had never made that call. But it couldn't be helped. Out of everyone she knew, her mother was one of the first that needed to know about what was going on; which is what lead her to requesting permission for Kara to be added to the Zeta tube database. Granted the young girl could only use them if her mother was with her, it almost felt strange that not a word had been said about it. Yet even after explaining everything to her mother about exactly who Kara was, there was still something she was dreading to the pint she was almost afraid of.

That fear came to life when they went to her mother's on Saturday for a special family party. Everything had been fine until Jade showed up with Lian and Roy. At first, things seemed a little tense until Artemis had explained everything. It wasn't until after Roy challenged Kara to a game of checkers that things started to relax a little.

"Hey mom," Artemis said as she closed the oven door, "I think your oven died."

Paula sighed as she turned her wheelchair around to look at her daughter and said, "Figures it would finally die the day I meet my 'first' granddaughter."

"Think we can convince Roy to go pick dinner up for us?" Artemis asked as Jade entered the kitchen.

"I think he would be more than happy to do that with as bad as he's getting his butt kicked by his own niece." Jade said getting a glass of water.

"I'm almost afraid to ask." Artemis asked looking at her sister.

"His last piece is cornered by Kara's three kings." Jade said before taking a drink.

"He needs a break." Artemis and Paula said in agreement.

Paula went into the living room and tried not to laugh as she looked towards the game going on.

"Hate to interrupt your game, but we're going to have to order dinner." she said glancing at the game board. Sure enough, a single black checker was sitting in a corner with three red kings a row away from it.

"So your relic of a stove finally died?" Roy asked leaning back in his seat.

"It did…unless you know how to fix it." she replied.

"Give me half an hour." he said before getting up and heading to the kitchen.

"You think he can fix it, Kara?" Paula asked looking at her granddaughter.

"You never know." Kara said with a light shrug.

"So what are you going to be for Trick or Treat, Kara?" Paula asked.

"Mom doesn't think it's a good idea if I did that this year." Kara said as Artemis walked into the room.

"She's extremely shy around people she doesn't know, mom." the blonde said sitting where Roy had been.

"I have a feeling there is something you haven't told me yet about my granddaughter." Paula said looking at her daughter.

"I'll tell you later," Artemis said as they heard a knock on the door, "I wonder who that is."

Paula went over and pulled the door open to reveal a couple of men standing there; one wearing dark sunglasses and the other holding a big box.

"Hi, we have a delivery for a Paula Crock." the one said smiling.

"I didn't order anything." Paula said a little puzzled.

"Oh you didn't…I did," Roy said from the doorway to the kitchen, "I'll explain later. Bring it in here guys."

"Excuse us, ma'am," the one said before the two followed Roy into the kitchen.

"Hi Conner," Kara said recognizing the one.

"He didn't…" Paula said as she closed the door before heading into the kitchen.

"I think Uncle Roy's in trouble." Kara giggled.

"He usually is." Artemis said as her sister entered the room.

"Alice, did you know he had two of your friends waiting with a new stove for mom?" Jade asked looking at her sister.

"Nope, but I figured that was what was in the box." Artemis said.

"So we're not eating out?" Kara asked a little puzzled.

"Not by the looks of it, Kara." Jade said sitting in a chair. They sat there for a few minutes till they saw Conner come walking out carrying the old stove.

"He's strong." Kara said as he walked out the front door.

"And he's a great friend," Artemis said as the other teen entered the room, "Dick."

"Artemis." he said before a hand grabbed the back of his shirt and dragged him back into the kitchen.

"What was that about?" Jade asked with a slight laugh.

"If Roy is getting yelled at for this, then Dick's getting yelled at for this as well," Artemis said as Conner appeared in the doorway.

"Is it safe?" he asked quietly.

The three shook their heads as Artemis replied, "More than likely…no."

He walked inside as Paula entered the room and said, "Roy and his friend will be taking care of dinner tonight."

"You're making Dick cook?" he asked looking at her.

"No, he's paying for it," she said looking at him, "And thanks for carrying that stove up here."

"You're welcome, Mrs. Crock." he said smiling.

"I better make sure they don't get anything with carrots or Chinese." Artemis said getting up.

"I can understand the Chinese one, but why carrots?" Jade asked as he sister left the room.

"Kara's allergic." Conner said leaning against a wall.

"Are you staying for dinner, Conner?" Kara asked.

"Sorry Kara, but I promised to take M'gann out for dinner tonight." he said looking at her.

"Aw, looks like your boyfriend won't be here for dinner tonight, little one." Jade teased.

Kara looked at her aunt and quietly said, "No offense, Aunt Jade, but if I want a boyfriend I'll take your husband."

Silence filled the room briefly before Paula started to snicker.

"You are so your mother's kid." Conner said as Artemis entered the room.

"Ok, what all did I miss?" she asked.

"Just your sister trying to tease Kara and getting burned instead." he said as the others entered the room.

Paula quickly told them about what had happened as she tried not to laugh.

"He's right, you know?" Dick said looking at Artemis, "That alone proves Kara is your kid."

"And don't you forget it." Artemis said with a smirk as she sat next to her daughter.

"Anyway," Paula said trying to change the subject, "Artemis really didn't give me enough time to get you something for your birthday, Kara."

"When is her birthday?" Jade asked looking at her sister.

"Today," Artemis replied calmly.

"Which is why I made certain to pick something up for you when I found out," Roy said before heading to the bathroom.

"But you didn't have to get me anything." Kara said looking at her uncle.

"Kara, giving a birthday gift is a way of showing someone you care about them," Paula said looking at the young girl, "Plus we're your family now; which means we care about you."

"I have a family?" Kara asked.

"Me, Jade, Roy, Lian, and mom are your family now," Artemis said lifting her daughter up onto her lap, "And we all love you very dearly."

"I love you too, mom." Kara said as she hugged her mother tight.

Artemis smiled as she returned the hug.

"Don't hog all the hugs, Alice." Jade said smiling.

"You have your own kid to hug." Artemis retorted as she brushed her daughter's hair.

"True, but I would like to give my niece a hug before dinner gets here." Jade said.

"Speaking of which," Dick said placing a hand on Conner's shoulder, "We got to go. Happy birthday, Kara, it was nice meeting you."

"Bye Conner. Bye Less," Kara said waving at the two.

Conner tried to stifle a laugh as Dick looked at her and said, "My name's Dick. Not Less."

"But Barbara said you like being called by your middle name better." she said.

"Come on, Less," Conner said pulling his friend towards the door, "We have to go."

Artemis waited till the door was closed before she started laughing.

"Ok, what did I miss?" Roy said as he walked back into the room carrying his daughter.

"Just Barbara trolling Grayson via my daughter," Artemis said as her laughter subsided.

"How'd she troll him?" Roy asked.

"Did you know his middle name is Less?" she asked looking at him.

"It is when he makes Barbara mad," he said sitting Lian on the floor.

"I don't want to know what he did this time," she said as they heard a knock on the door, "And it sounds like dinner's here."

Lian crawled over to Artemis and pulled herself up so she could see her new cousin before Jade picked her up and took her to the dining room table. Everyone else was ready to eat as well so they headed that way and dinner was passed out.


	4. Chapter Four: Bullies

Chapter Four

Bullies...

Kara started to open up more over the next couple of months. Thanks largely to Artemis, the young girls confidence slowly started to grow. As December rolled around, she appeared to be like any other seven year old; curious, full of energy, and goofy when she felt like it. Yet it still felt like she was hiding something. Unfortunately that was the furthest thing from her mind as the day of the school's Christmas party arrived.

The first part of the day had been nothing more than review of what had been covered the day before. But wasn't until after lunch that the individual parties were to start. Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned as the class returned from lunch recess.

"I take it you guys were having fun with the snow," Artemis said as she noticed some the students clothes looked a little wet. It wasn't until Kara walked in holding a paper towel on her nose that she realized something wasn't right.

"What happened?" she asked as started to get upset.

The class was silent almost as if they were afraid of something.

"It's going to be like then," she said looking at each of her students, "Eric, go grab the trash can and throw every Secret Santa gift on the back table away now. Everyone else, get your English books out and turn to page fifty-five. Since you won't tell me what happened, the day goes on like normal."

"Randy and Ted were showing everyone what they learned in their karate classes," one of the girls said standing up, "When Kara told them to stop, Randy punched her and said if we told they would do the same to us if we told."

"Tattletale," Randy said glaring at her.

"Shut it, Randy, " Artemis said before hearing the door open.

"Sorry for not knocking, but I need to talk to you for a minute Ms. Crock." a man said entering the room.

"If it's about what happened during recess, I already know, Principal Blackthorn," she said glaring at the two boys, "Unless you've come to take them to the office, my class's party is cancelled."

"Oh I'm here for them alright," he said not sounding happy, "But I also came to see how Kara is doing."

"I'm trying to figure out why she's sitting in my classroom with a bloody nose instead of the nurse's office." she said walking over to the two boys.

"She said she was fine and didn't need the nurse." Ted said sinking in his seat a little.

"Is that true Kara?" Artemis asked closing her right hand.

"Ted kicked her in the jaw and told her go to class or he will give her something to cry about," one of the girls said handing Kara the Kleenex box. Without so much as a word, Artemis pulled her cell phone out and dialed a number.

"Ms. Crock, what are you doing?" Mr. Blackthorn asked.

"My name is Artemis Crock, I'm a teacher at Palo Alto Elementary," she said never taking her eyes off the two boys, "Two of the students assaulted another and I need to press charges against them. Thank you."

She ended the call and put her phone away saying, "There is an officer on his way here to take you to jail for what you did. Now get out of my classroom."

"Let's go you two." the principal said places a hand on the boy's shoulders.

Once the principal left with the two, Artemis walked over and knelt next to her daughter saying softly, "Its ok, Kara. Let me see." Kara let out a soft whimper as she slowly lowered her hand. "Looks like the bleedings stopped," Artemis said after a few seconds.

She grabbed some of the Kleenex's and gently dabbed at the blood before saying, "Jenna, bottom left draw of my desk has a first aid kit and two water bottles. I need you to bring them here. Eric, please run up to the office and ask if one of them can come down and take over for me."

The two students did as they were told as another student placed a napkin on Kara's desk saying, "I was able to find the two teeth Ted knocked out of her mouth, Ms. Crock."

"Thank you, Lara," Artemis said before she started to clean up her daughter's face, "You ok, Kara?"

"No." the young girl whimpered.

"I know it hurts." Artemis said softly as she heard the door open.

"Mr. Blackthorn said he'll be down in a few minutes to take over for you." Eric said as he walked in.

"Thank you, Eric," she said.

"Are you going somewhere, Ms. Crock?" Jenna asked.

"I'm going to take Kara to the hospital to make sure she's ok," Artemis said before handing one of the water bottles to her daughter, "Kara, go to the bathroom and rinse your mouth out with this. Lara, could you please go with her to make sure she's ok?"

As the two left the room, Artemis stood up and looked at her students saying, "I don't doubt you all have some questions, but let me start with Kara is my daughter. I didn't find this out until shortly after the school year started. It would take too long to explain and right now I'm worried about her. Principal Blackthorn is going to take over for the rest of the afternoon, because I don't know how long I'm going to be."

"We understand Ms. Crock," Eric said smiling, "We all hope Kara is ok."

"Do you still want Eric to throw out the Secret Santa gifts?" one of the students asked.

"No, the party's back on since you told me what happened," Artemis said looking at the student, "Go ahead and hand them out, Steven, and we'll at least have Kara open hers before we leave." As the gifts were passed out, Artemis went over and started packing up her desk. She had no more than finished when Kara and Lara walked back in followed by the principal.

"I hope you don't mind me asking why you need someone to take over your class." Mr. Blackthorn said.

Artemis pointed at Kara after grabbing her jacket and said, "My daughter; hospital, now."

"Enough said." he replied holding his hands up in the air.

"Ok before we leave; Kara, I want you and the person you got a gift for to open your gifts now." Artemis said looking at her students. Kara slowly opened her gift and smiled a little before holding up a white bear.

"You're welcome, Kara," the one girl said smiling, "And thank you for the hairclips."

Kara gave the girl a thumbs-up before looking at her mother.

"Behave for the principal everyone." Artemis said before she left with Kara.

A Little While Later

After giving her statement to the police offer, they had left the school and went to the local hospital where they were seen almost immediately.

"Well?" Artemis asked impatiently. "

"She doesn't have a broken nose or concussion," the doctor said after checking Kara's eyes, "As far as her jaw goes, that kid didn't hit her hard enough to do any major damage. If anything, that hit jarred her jaw hard enough to knock the last of her baby teeth out."

"My jaw still hurts." Kara said quietly.

"I understand, Kara," the doctor said before picking up his clipboard, "It will hurt for a while. Until then I recommend some children's Tylenol and some ice cream for the pain."

"Thank you doctor." Artemis said before he left the room.

She walked over and hugged her daughter as she asked, "Ready to go home?"

"I need a new shirt." Kara said laying her head on her mother's shoulder.

"Then let's go home and you can change your shirt." Artemis said. She helped Kara off the table and they started to head towards the exit when her phone went off.

"Hello." she said answering it.

"Hey Artemis," came a familiar voice over the phone, "I thought you might like to know that your school's security system caught what happened on tape and it was turned over to the police."

"Thanks Dick." she said taking her daughter's hand in hers.

"Is Kara ok?" he asked sounding a little worried.

"Other than hurting, nothings broken and no concussion," she replied as they arrived at her car, "The doctor did say children's Tylenol and ice cream for the pain though."

"That makes sense." he said.

"What's wrong?" she asked unlocking her car.

He was quiet for a few seconds before saying, "Barbara found out who Kara's father is."

"Wally," she said opening the door for her daughter, "I kind of figured."

"Can you image what he would've done after finding out what those two did?" he asked sounding a little amused.

"I don't think I want to know." she replied closing the door after Kara was buckled.

"Have you told Barry about her yet?" he asked.

"No offense, but I'm trying to keep her away from the League and that life," she said walking over to the driver's side, "But I do need to tell Wally's parents."

"I'd call them first before introducing her to them." he said.

"No you wouldn't," she said with a slight smirk, "You'd just show up and go 'Hey Bruce, meet the kid I never knew I had which makes you're a grandfather now.'"

"Yeah you're right. I would do that." he said with a laugh.

"Thanks for the call, Dick; but I just want to get Kara home."

"I get it; tell her to stay traught alright."

Artemis laughed as her memory of the fight with the Reds came back at hearing those words. "I will, bye Dick."

With that Artemis closed her phone and Kara looked at her in confusion.

"What did Less have to say?"

"I'll explain when we get home; let's go get some ice cream and I need to pick up some Children's Tylenol for you."

"Okay, mommy."

With that Artemis got in the car and the mother and daughter were on their way home.


	5. Chapter Five: Speedster

Chapter Five

Speedster...

It almost felt like Kara's birthday all over again. The dread, nervousness, all of it seemed to return with one simple phone call to the West. Even after everything was explained, Artemis still couldn't shake that feeling like something was going to happen. It was during that first phone call that she agreed to bring Kara over for Christmas Eve at least. Unfortunately, it started to get worse when Barry arrived with his family followed by the Garrick's and Bart.

'This is not good.' she thought nervously.

"Barry, can I talk to you and Bart in the kitchen for a minute?" she said getting up from her seat on the couch, "Now." The two followed her into the kitchen each wondering what was so important.

Before either could ask, then blonde turned to face them and quietly said, "Kara has no clue about our alter egos and I want it kept that way. No talking about the League, team, or any of that. Got it?"

"Take it easy Artemis. I wasn't going to tell her unless you said it was ok." Barry said looking at her.

"Same here," Bart said taking a step back.

"Dick did fill us in on what happened at your school. Is she ok?" Barry asked a little worried.

"She says she's fine, but I'm not sure." she said looking at him.

"We'll make sure we don't say anything about our abilities or the League," Bart said smiling a little, "And I'll make sure that Jay and the others know as well."

"Thanks Bart." Artemis said before the speedster left the room.

"Everything will be fine, Artemis," Barry said placing a hand on her shoulder, "I'd say don't worry, but that comes with being a parent."

"Tell me about it," she said sighing. They walked back into the living room as the heard Kara say, "I don't want to learn how to fight."

"What's going on?" Artemis asked.

"Rudy is trying to convince Kara into letting him teach her how to box." Mary said not sounding too happy with her husband.

"I'm just saying I think it would be a good idea for her to learn how to defend herself." Rudy said looking at Artemis.

"Unless she wants to learn; no one is teaching her," Artemis said sitting in a chair, "What started this conversation anyway?"

"Kara was telling us about what happened at school and Rudy said she wouldn't have gotten hurt if she knew how to fight." Joan Garrick stated.

"And Kara is very adamant about not wanting to learn how to fight. " her husband, Jay, said.

"I think we need to drop the subject now." Artemis said as her daughter climbed on her lap.

"Just answer me one question real quick," Rudy said looking at Kara, "Why don't you want to learn, Kara?"

"I don't want to hurt people." the young girl said laying her head on her mother's shoulder.

"But you wouldn't be hurting people." Rudy started to say.

"NO!" Kara yelled as the lights started to flicker before going out.

"Did we just blow a breaker?" Bart asked.

"I don't think so," Barry said looking out a window, "Because the neighbor's lights are out as well." Mary sighed before saying, "Great, a blackout."

"I don't think it's a blackout," Iris said before the lights flickered back on.

"That was weird," Bart said puzzled.

"I think I better call work to see if they know what happened." Barry said pulling his phone out.

"Actually, I think I might know what happened." Iris said looking towards Kara. All eyes slowly turned to look at the little girl.

"Are you saying Kara caused that?" Mary said looking back at the reporter.

"Not intentionally." Iris replied.

"What did I do?" Kara asked a little afraid.

"You didn't do anything, Kara." Artemis said hugging her daughter.

"I was wondering when her meta-ability was going to kick in." Bart said quietly.

"Kara has a meta-ability?" Mary said looking at him.

"Yeah, she can absorb and manipulate l-ight," he said as everyone looked at him, "Oops, spoilers."

"Bart," Artemis said trying to stay calm, "What do you know about Kara?"

The speedster let out a low sigh before saying, "Like I said, she can manipulate light however she wants. And if she can absorb enough of it; she can create light based constructs like the Green Lanterns, or use it to duplicate the powers of others."

"I can?" Kara asked looking at the teen.

"With the right training you can," he said solemnly, "But if you absorb to much light, you'll start to lose control over it."

"Can we not talk about this right now?" Artemis asked as she hugged her daughter a little tighter.

"Good idea," Mary said in agreement before looking at her husband, "And you'll be sleeping in the garage if you say another word about fighting. Got it?"

"Yes dear." he said.

"Good," she said getting up, "Now, would anyone like some dessert?"

"Do you have any ice cream?" Kara asked looking at her grandmother.

"That and pie," Mary said smiling, "Would you like some?"

"Yes please." Kara said quietly.

"Sure thing, sweetie," Mary said before looking at the others, "Anyone else?"

"Let me give you a hand, Mary." Joan said as she started to stand up.

"No, Rudy and I can handle this," Mary said before glaring at her husband, "Isn't that right, dear?"

"Yes dear." Rudy said standing up.

"Whipped," Jay said as he watched the man head to the kitchen.

"So how's the teaching job going, Artemis?" Iris said looking at the young woman.

"It's good, minus what happened recently." Artemis replied.

"Bart and I will explain later," Barry interjected placing a hand on his wife's, "It's not a good story to tell right now."

"What's not a good story?" Mary asked as her and Rudy walked back into the living room carrying some plates.

"It deals with something that happened at Artemis's school." Barry said calmly.

"You were telling me about that over the phone yesterday." Ruby said looking at the speedster.

"So that is how that topic got started." Jay said.

"And that topic is going to stay buried," Mary said as she and her husband started handing out the desserts.

"Thank you," Kara said quietly as she took hers, "What kind of ice cream is this?"

"Vanilla and I gave you a slice of pumpkin pie," Mary replied.

"There's a carrot cake out there if anyone wants some," Rudy said before sitting down, "I almost convinced Mary into letting Kara have a piece."

"I'm allergic to carrots." Kara said before taking a bite of the ice cream.

"No offense, Rudy, but do you have something against Kara?" Joan asked in a teasing tone.

"Tonight is my first time meeting her and I had no idea about the carrots." he said holding his hands up.

"You could've fooled me," Kara whispered before trying the pie, "This is good."

"I'm glad you like it." Mary said before sitting down.

"So what is Kara like in school, Artemis?" Joan asked.

"She's basically like she is now," Artemis replied with a slight smile, "Quiet, shy, but she can really goofy and can troll a person when she feels like it."

"Conner told me about how she got Dick and your sister." Bart said smiling.

"She got them good that day." she said smiling.

"Think you can record it the next time she goes to do something like that?" Barry asked.

"Blackmail or payback?" she asked looking at the speedster.

"A little of both." he answered.

"That and proof that the great Nightwing can be trolled." Iris stated.

"Who's Nightwing?" Kara asked looking at her mother.

"It's Dick's gamer ID," Bart said quickly, "He uses it when he plays online games."

"He's also a massive pain when he play's those games." Barry added.

"Oh." she said before finishing her ice cream.

"Do you want any more, Kara?" Mary asked looking at her granddaughter.

"No thank you, grandma." Kara said before yawning.

"And I think that is our cue to head for home." Artemis said taking her daughter's plate and putting it on the coffee table.

"Do we have to leave?" Kara asked sounding a little sleepy.

"If you don't leave now, Santa Clause won't stop at your place." Jay said with a smile.

"But Santa isn't real, is he?" Kara asked looking at her mother.

"Santa's real," Barry said looking at the young girl, "Who told you he wasn't?"

"My former foster dad." she said laying her head on her mother's shoulder.

"Never believe a word that man says," Artemis said coldly, "For he's nothing more than a liar."

"Ok, mom." the young girl said as her eyes closed before falling asleep.

"I'm SOO kicking my father's butt next time I see him." Artemis lowly said.

"I'll help." Mary and Barry stated at the same time.

"Same here, Sportsmaster needs some major mode dropped on him." Bart added.

"Bye everyone," Artemis said with a smile and she headed out with her daughter still fast asleep.


	6. Chapter 6: Santa Wears Black

Chapter Six

Santa Wears Black...

From Artemis's personal experience, knowing a speedster has come in handy on a few different occasions; such as needing help carrying a sleeping seven year old home. After getting a lift from Barry and Bart, Artemis tucked her daughter in before grabbing the gifts from her closet she had hidden there. As she slipped quietly into the living room, she immediately knew she wasn't alone.

"I'm surprised you're here and not in Gotham." she whispered as she placed a few gifts by the tree.

A lone figured stepped out of the shadows as he said just as quietly, "I was asked to check on you and Kara by a friend."

"Tell your friend, Lucius, we're good," she said placing the last gift, "Thank you for asking though, Batman."

"If you need any help, all you have to do is ask." the dark knight said.

"I may take you up on that offer someday," she replied with a slight smile, "For now, I need to get to bed. I'm not sure how long Kara is going to sleep in tomorrow."

He gave a slight nod saying, "I understand, Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, Batman." she said before heading back to bed. She climbed into her bed and had no more than closed her eyes before she heard someone calling her.

"Mom, get up." she heard Kara said sounding a little scared.

"What's wrong, Kara?" Artemis asked opening her eyes.

"I think someone broke in last night," Kara replied.

"Does this have anything to do with a bunch of wrapped presents by the tree?" Artemis asked looking at her daughter.

Kara blinked a few times as she asked, "H-how did you…"

"That means Santa was here." her mother said sitting up.

"You mean he is real?" Kara asked before hearing Brucely bark.

"Can you go see what he's barking about?" Artemis asked getting up.

"Ok." the young girl said before leaving the room. After pulling on a pair of sleep pants, Artemis walked to the living room to find one of the chairs filled with gifts.

'He didn't?' she thought.

"Are those from Santa as well?" Kara asked as she watched her mother pick up one of the gifts.

"More like friends and family." Artemis said smiling. She looked at her daughter and asked, "So do you want some breakfast first, or do you want to open these instead?"

"Pancakes sound good." Kara said looking at the gifts.

"Pancakes it is." Artemis said setting the gift back down.

Once they finished breakfast, they turned their attention to gifts around the tree. While the greatest majority of them were for the young girl, Artemis was surprised that some were for her. As Kara opened the last of the gifts, her mother sighed as she looked at what all her daughter had received.

'I have a feeling most of that is from the League.' she thought smiling. She looked back at her daughter to find the young girl glaring at her.

"Is something wrong?" Artemis asked a little worried.

"I think Aunt Jade was here." Kara said holding up a copy of Twilight.

"I take it you've read it." Artemis said trying not to laugh.

"Jacob's a bigger creeper than Batman." Kara said putting the book on the coffee table.

"Not going to argue with you about that." Artemis said with a laugh. Once they took care of the wrapping paper, the two settled in for a movie marathon.

The outside world seemed to disappear as they watch movie after movie. It wasn't until after the second one that Kara's stomach growled.

Artemis looked at her daughter and tried not to laugh as she said, "I take it someone it hungry."

Kara blushed slight before she giggled as her mother's stomach growled.

"Oh hush." Artemis said playfully pushing her daughters shoulder. Kara bumped into her mother as they heard the doorbell ring.

"I got it." she said getting up. Kara went over and opened the door to find a raven haired woman standing there.

"Hi, is Artemis here?" the woman asked smiling.

"Hang on, Zee," Artemis said getting up and walking over, "What brings you here?"

"Originally it was to see if you were up for a movie marathon, but now." Zatanna said looking towards the young girl.

"Kara, I'd like you to meet Zatanna," Artemis said doing to introductions, "Zee, this is Kara, my daughter."

"You have a daughter?" the magician asked surprised.

"Come on in and I'll explain." Artemis said.

"Thanks, and I brought a couple of pizza's and some ice cream." Zatanna said indicating a plastic bag as she entered.

"I'll get one of those started," Artemis said before taking the bag and heading to the kitchen.

"How do you know my mom?" Kara asked a little shyly.

Zatanna knelt in front of the young girl and said, "We used to work at the same place when we were younger."

"Where was that?" Kara asked.

"With my father," the magician said smiling, "The two of us and some other friends helped my father behind the scenes."

"What did he do?" Kara asked.

"Her father was a magician called the Great Zatara," Artemis said as she entered the room, "I have two pizzas in the oven."

"Ok, now how did you get a daughter?" Zatanna said turning her attention to her friend.

"This all started back at the end of August." Artemis started to explain as they sat on the couch.

It didn't take long to fill the magician in as to what all had transpired over the past few months.

"And this is what happens when I do a show in Vegas," Zatanna said leaning back against the couch, "I miss so much."

"Well, at least you're here now." Kara said looking at her mother's friend.

"You did miss her trolling Dick and my sister though." Artemis said before getting up to check on the dinner.

"That is always fun to watch." Zatanna said smiling.

"He's an easy target." Kara said quietly.

"Not for everyone," the magician said looking at the young girl, "He's usually is the one trolling people."

"And enough about him," Artemis said as she walked in and placed two pizza's on the coffee table, "I think it's time for another movie."

Kara nodded as she smiled asking, "Which one are we watching next?"

"The third one, unless there is something else you want to watch." Artemis said going over to change the DVD's.

"I can think of one, but I'm not sure Kara can watch it." Zatanna said.

"If you mean the Doctor, we started that one a few nights ago." Artemis said before looking at her friend, "I have a few water bottles in the fridge if you want one, Zee."

"I'll get them." Kara said before heading into the kitchen.

"Thank you, sweetie," Artemis said before walking back over to the couch.

"I take it you haven't told her yet." Zatanna whispered.

"Not yet. I want her to stay innocent for as long as she can," Artemis replied quietly as she watched her daughter, "She deserves at least that after dealing with my father for a year."

"So what movie were you two watching before I got here?" Zatanna asked as she saw Kara carrying three water bottles towards them.

"It was one about a magic school." Kara said as her mother took two of the bottles.

"Really, how far did you get?" the magician asked getting handed one of the bottles.

"The second one just ended as you arrived." Artemis said.

"I didn't like the spiders or the big snake." Kara said sitting next to her mother.

"Then you might like the third one," Zatanna said smiling, "It doesn't have either of them."

"But the one jerk gets punched in the nose." Artemis said before hitting play.

"So what are you two doing tomorrow?" Zatanna asked as they each grabbed a slice of pizza.

"No talking." Kara said as the opening credits started playing.

"Sorry." Zatanna said before taking a bite of her pizza.

Artemis leaned over to her friend and whispered, "Don't feel bad. I got yelled at for asking her about lunch during the first movie."

Zatanna slowly nodded as they watched the movie. It wasn't until they were half way through the fourth in the series that Artemis realized Kara had fallen asleep. She hit pause on the movie and smiled as she watched her daughter sleep.

"Conner was right," Zatanna said looking at her friend, "You have changed."

"I agree," Artemis said softly. She carefully picked her daughter up and carried her to her room. After she tucked her in, Artemis went back into the living room to find Zatanna putting the dirty dishes in the sink.

"You didn't have to do that Zee," the blonde said walking over.

"And you didn't have to let me stay for dinner and a couple of movies," Zatanna said turning to face her friend.

"Yeah well, no one should spend Christmas alone," Artemis replied.

"Good point;" the magician said with a yawn, "Tell you what: bring Kara to my place and we can finish the final four movies for New Year's."

"And we'll bring dinner," Artemis said before yawning, "Sorry. It's been a long day."

"Then go get some sleep. I'll see myself out." Zatanna said before heading to the door.

"Zee, we'll save your father some way." Artemis said with a smile.

Zatanna turned and Artemis saw the tears. "I know, I just wish I were stronger."

"I have a better idea, and trust me, it will work." Artemis said. "But it's a surprise, and you probably won't know when it's going to happen."

"Alright," Zatanna said as she wiped the tears away and headed out.

"Now I just need Jade to teach Kara that trick of hers with poker." Artemis said to herself as she went on to bed and would worry about the dinner dishes later.


	7. Chapter Seven: Secret Revealed

Chapter Seven

Secret Revealed...

The first couple of days after Christmas seemed to have passed in a blur. Between bouncing from city to city via the Zeta Tubes to return gifts Kara had received due to being the wrong size, both Artemis and Kara were starting to feel like a couple of ping pong balls.

After they walked out of one of the stores in Coast City, the young girl looked at her mother and asked, "Can we go home?"

"As soon as we make one more stop," Artemis said with a sigh, "Getting tired or hungry?"

"A little of both," Kara said a little nervously taking her mother's hand in hers.

"Plus the crowds," Artemis said as they walked to the nearby Zeta tube. They were passing a store window when Artemis noticed they were being followed.

"Hey mom, why is there a man following us?" Kara asked looking up at her mother.

"Let's find out," Artemis said before they ducked down an alley. She leaned against the one wall and pulled her daughter over so she was hidden from view seconds before a man entered the ally.

"Care to explain why you're following us?" she asked a little upset.

The man stopped in his tracks and slowly looked at her before giving a weak chuckle then said, "Hey Artemis."

"Answer the question, Hal," she said crossing her arms.

He sighed before looking her in the eyes and said, "M'gann asked everyone to keep an eye on you and Kara if you show up in our cities."

"Of course she did," Artemis said before pushing off from the wall.

Without so much as a word, she took her daughter's hand in hers and walked to the end of the alley were a broken down photo booth was sitting.

"Kara, close your eyes," she said as the two entered. The young girl did as she was told as she held on to her mother.

"Recognized: Tigress; B-Zero Seven. Kara: A-Two Nine."

"You can't tell anyone about what you see here," Artemis said as she reached up and gently stroked her daughter's hair, "You can open your eyes."

Kara slowly opened her eyes and slowly looked around in amazement.

"Where are we?" she asked looking towards one of the observation windows.

"The Justice Leagues Watchtower, squirt." a voice said next to her.

She looked over to see someone that looked close to her mother's age in a red and yellow outfit.

"Kara, I'd like you to meet Kid Flash." Artemis said doing a quick introduction.

"Don't call me squirt, Bart, by the way…that mask doesn't hide your hair well enough." Kara said.

"Sorry, Kara," he said given her an apologetic smile, "And if you're looking for M'gann, she's in the training area with Conner."

"Thank you." Artemis said as the two walked off.

"Mom, how did we get on the Watchtower?" Kara asked after a few seconds.

"Because I used to be part of a team that helped them out," her mother said looking at her daughter, "But I stepped away from it once you came into my life."

Kara smiled a little before saying, "It would be cool if you were Tigress. My foster dad always threw such a fit after she kicked his head in."

"It's funny you should say that," Artemis muttered with a smirk. They finally arrived at the training area in time to see a strange looking teen land flat on their back. Kara took a step behind her mother as she heard a voice announce the person's fail.

"It's ok, Kara. They're my friends," Artemis said looking down a t her daughter.

"Artemis!" a green skinned girl said flying over and giving her a hug, "What are you doing here?"

"Trying to figure out why you had Hal Jordan following me," Artemis said looking at her friend.

"I just wanted to make sure nothing bad happened to you and Kara." M'gann replied. "…Considering what you told me when Nightwing and I picked you up from the hospital," the Martian said mentally to her friend.

"Thanks M'gann." Artemis said with a slight smile.

"Hey Artemis," a teen in a red and black outfit said walking up, "Who's your shadow?"

"That's Kara," M'gann replied almost instantly, "She's the one that trolled Nightwing"

"He asked for it," Kara said quietly.

"Robin, meet my daughter Kara," Artemis said trying not to laugh.

"Conner told me about you," Robin said looking at the young girl with a smile.

"He did?" Kara asked a little nervously.

"He said he wished he would've had a camera to record you doing that," he replied as his smile widened.

"No corrupting my kid," Artemis said looking at him.

"I'm not corrupting her," Robin said looking at the blonde, "I'm just saying what Conner did."

"Uh, m-m-mom," Kara said as she slipped around the other side of her mother.

Artemis looked over and smiled before saying, "Its ok, Kara. That's just Wolf. He won't hurt you."

"You sure?" the young girl asked nervously.

"Just think of him like an oversized Brucely," Artemis reassured her. Kara slowly peered out from behind her mother and giggled as the venom enhanced animal started to sniff her.

"I think Wolf just got a new playmate," M'gann said as she watched the animal interact with the young girl.

"You do know that once Cassie sees her, Kara will probably get called cute, right?" Robin asked.

"Please let her know not to do that," Artemis said.

"Will do," he said before they heard Kara squeal.

"He licked you, didn't he?" Artemis asked trying not to laugh. "He sniffed my ear," Kara replied before Wolf licked her face, "EWWW!"

"Now he licked her," Artemis said before she started laughing.

"Sounds like someone is having fun over here," a man in a red suit with a yellow lightning bolts said as he walked over.

"Just my kid meeting Wolf for the first time, Flash," Artemis said as her daughter ducked behind her.

"Uncle Barry?" Kara asked looking up at him, "Why are you dressed like that?"

"I'm starting to think I don't have to tell her who some people are." Artemis said via the link as she tried not to laugh.

"Well, because I am the Flash," Barry said smiling, "Just don't tell anyone else. Ok, Pixie?"

Kara smiled before saying, "Ok."

"She lets you call her Pixie?" Artemis asked a little surprised at the nickname.

"She said it was fine and better then what Bart calls her." he said with a shrug.

"I'm almost afraid to ask." M'gann said.

"He calls me Squirt," Kara said as Wolf rested his head on top of hers and she giggled.

"I do have a question though," Robin said looking at the former archer, "How come you haven't brought Kara by sooner?"

"Because she needs to be a kid for as long as she can after dealing with him," Artemis replied.

"And by him you mean…..?" he asked.

"I'll explain later." M'gann said before Kara suddenly hid behind her mother.

"Not trying to sound mean, Kara, but I am not a jungle gym." Artemis said before looking down at her daughter.

"Can we go home?" Kara asked sounding frightened.

Artemis knelt down and gently pulled her daughter into a hug asking, "Hey, what's wrong?"

The young girl buried her face in her mother's shoulder as they heard someone ask, "Who's the kid?"

"Artemis's daughter, Kara," Robin said looking at his fellow team member, "I think you may have scared her, La'gaan."

The Atlantean gave a weak laugh before saying, "Sorry about that, little one."

"It's ok," Kara said slowly looking up at him, "And don't call me little."

"I'll make you a deal, Kara," La'gaan said with a smile, "Tell me who your mom is on the team and I will never call you little again."

"Hold that thought." Barry said before grabbing La'gaan and speeding off with him.

"Is he in trouble?" Kara asked looking at her mother.

Artemis sighed before looking at her daughter and said, "In a way, yes."

"Is it because of that question, or because I found your costume?" Kara asked.

"More like because….wait. WHAT?" her mother asked.

"I found your Tigress costume," Kara said shyly, "It was back when we were cleaning out the closets. I'm sorry if I ruined any Halloween plans you had this year."

"That's not a Halloween costume." Artemis said with a slight laugh.

Kara eyes widened after a few seconds before asking, "You mean you're….?"

"The one and only," Artemis said a nod, "Sorry for not telling you sooner."

Kara gave her mother a brief hug before lightly smacking her in the shoulder and said, "You should've hit him harder."

"In my defense, he moved, after all he DID train me….your foster father is MY father, but I don't claim him anymore." Artemis said before hugging her daughter.

"GOOD!" Kara said with happiness and resentment towards her foster father who was now in prison.

"Does this mean we get to tell her who we are?" M'gann asked.

"Later," Artemis said slowly standing up with her daughter in her arms, "Right now, we have one last store to hit before we head home."


	8. Chapter Eight: Redheaded League

Chapter Eight

Redheaded League...

Shortly after the New Year started, Kara found herself working with one of the Green Lanterns for an hour after each school day. While she knew it was to help get her new found abilities under control, there were times when she ended up not being able to work with either one because they would get called off world. Usually when this happened; she just worked on her homework while she waited for her mother, or just read whatever book she had with her. As February fast approached, she found herself in a weird predicament.

"Not good." she whispered as she looked at her watch.

"Something wrong, Kara?" Bart asked standing next to her.

"Both lanterns are off world, I finished both my homework and book, and mom won't be here for about half an hour," she said.

"So you need something to do until then, huh? You could let Black Canary teach you some basic combat skills." he suggested.

"I'm not learning how to hurt people," she said sitting down on the floor.

"How come you don't want to learn?" he asked sitting next to her.

"You don't want to know." she said quietly before something blocked out the light. They looked up to see a teen about Bart's age looking at them.

"Don't you think she's a little too young to be your girlfriend, hermano?" the teen said crossing his arms over his chest.

"That's not funny, Jaime," Bart said getting to his feet.

"Chill man, I'm just messing with you," Jaime said with a smile, "So who's the kid anyway?"

"Jaime, I'd like you to meet Artemis's daughter, Kara," Bart said.

"You're kidding?" Jaime said looking at the little girl.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kara asked looking at him.

"Sorry, it's just hard to image you being her daughter," he said kneeling in front of her, "But now that I think about it, you do kind of look like her though."

"Kind of?" she asked glaring at him.

"You look like a younger, redheaded version of her," he said.

"And what is wrong with redheads?" a voice asked from behind him. Kara looked behind him to see a woman standing there with what looked like wings on her back.

"N-n-nothing," he stammered as he quickly got to his feet and turned to face the League member, "I-I was just saying that Kara looks like a redheaded version of Artemis."

"Oh really," the woman said looking at the girl, "Well she does look like her."

"I think he's just jealous he's not a redhead." Barbara said as she stepped out from behind the woman.

"I believe you do have a point there, Batgirl," the woman said as she started to smile, "Especially considering his code name is Blue Beetle."

"I think he needs to be taught a lessons about underestimating redheads," the woman said as her smile widened.

"Oh no," Jaime said as he took a step backwards.

Kara looked up at Bart and asked, "Think we should tell them about that girlfriend comment he made?"

"What girlfriend comment?" Barbara and the other woman said sounding a little upset.

"I meant it as a joke," Jaime said holding his hands up.

"If it was a joke, then why did you ask if I was Bart's girlfriend?" Kara asked a little puzzled.

Before another word could be said, Barbara walked up to her teammate and said, "Training area, now."

"Yes ma'am," Jaime said nodding.

As the two walked off, Kara looked over at Bart and asked, "Did I do something wrong?"

"You didn't do anything wrong, little one," he said as he knelt in front of the young girl, "I have a feeling that Barbara needed to vent some angry because of something a friend did."

"Oh, she needed to vent;" the woman said looking at the girl, "But what I want to know is who are you?"

Kara got to her feet as Bart said, "Hawkwoman, I'd like you to meet Kara. She's Artemis's daughter."

"It's nice to meet you," Kara said a little shyly.

"So you're Kara," Hawkwoman said with a gentle smile, "Both Green Lanterns have told me quite a bit about you."

"They have?" the young girl asked a little surprised.

"And it has all been good," Hawkwoman assured the young girl, "Now, do you want to go watch what Batgirl is doing to Blue Beetle?"

"Only until my mom gets here," Kara said softly.

"Kara's not really into any kind of fighting," Bart said as the three of them walked over to the training area.

"That's understandable," Hawkwoman said.

"Are you're wings real?" Kara asked looking at the League member.

"As real as you are Artemis's daughter," Hawkwoman said looking at the young girl, "How come you don't like fighting?"

"I don't like seeing people get hurt," Kara replied as they arrived in time to see Barbara dodge a kick from her teammate.

"None of us do," Hawkwoman said as they watched the sparing match, "Which is why we learn how to defend those who can't."

"But doesn't it hurt when you get hit?" Kara asked.

"Depends on the person," Bart said standing next to the young girl, "It takes a lot to hurt certain members, while others, like Barbara and Jaime there, wear body armor."

"That makes sense," Kara said with a slight smile. "There is one thing I do want to know," Hawkwoman said as she turned her attention to the young girl, "Why isn't Artemis here with you?" "Mom had a teachers' meeting she had to be at today," Kara started to explain, "She had enough time before it started to drop me off here so I can train with one of the Lantern's before it started."

"…Not knowing that both Lantern's got called off world four minutes before Kara got here," Bart said as he watched the armor covering Jaime's right hand began to change till it formed a sonic cannon.

Before anyone knew what was going on, the cannon swung around and discharged at Kara. With barely any time to think, a pair of white wings quickly emerged from the girls back and launched her-self airborne a split second before the blast could hit her.

"Jaime, what are you doing?" Barbara yelled as the teen fired another blast at the girl. Almost instinctively, a white shield formed on the girl's left arm and blocked the second shot before she flew directly at the armor teen.

"What has gotten into you Scarab?" Jaime yelled as the cannon continued to fire shot after shot.

The shield on the girl's arm dissolved as she veered left and circled wide before charging start at him. A white mace formed in her right hand as she did a barrel roll before swinging it like a ball bat. The mace connected with the teens left shoulder with enough force to send him flying towards a hallway Aquaman had emerged from. Bart took off running towards the Atlantean King at top speed to stop him from getting hit, but was a millisecond too late.

"Aquaman, are you ok?" the speedster asked.

"But the whales…" the Atlantean said before blacking out.

"He's feeling the mode." Bart said as he looked back towards the training area to see Barbara holding the young girl. "This is so not crash…" he whispered before looking over at his friend, "You ok, Jaime?"

"I'm fine," the armored teen said as he slowly got to his feet, "But I don't think I'm going to be saving anyone for a while."

"What's wrong?" the speedster asked as Hawkwoman landed next to him.

"Because whatever she hit me with caused some major damage to Scarab." Jaime replied as the armor covering his left arm disintegrated.

"Well, at least this can't get any worse." Bart said with a slight laugh.

"Recognized: Batman: Zero Two. Tigress; B-Zero Seven."

"You and your big mouth," Jaime said as he watched Hawkwoman reach up and slap the speedster upside his head.

"Well, I'm going to be feeling the mode…." Bart said as his eyes showed his fear of Tigress AND Batman together.


	9. Chapter Nine: Movies

Chapter Nine

Movies...

What had originally started as a way to bring in the New Year had quickly turned into a weekly event for Artemis, Kara and Zatanna. The three would gather at either the magician's place or the former archer's on Friday nights and would watch a couple of movies till the youngest of them fell asleep. But after Jaime's unexplainable attack towards Kara, Artemis had called Zatanna and asked for their movie night to be extended to cover the entire first weekend of February. But the magician wasn't the only one that had shown up for the impromptu movie weekend. Jade had arrived unexpectedly bearing assorted snacks.

"Starting to think we should've done this at my place." Zatanna said as she helped Artemis grab some bowls from the kitchen.

"I think we should have." Artemis said smiling a little.

"So did anyone find out why your beetle friend went after my niece like that?" Jade asked as the two walked back into the living room.

"Unfortunately, we're not sure," Artemis said sitting on the couch next to her daughter, "The Scarab has been trying to repair itself ever since Kara hit it."

"But I'm not dangerous, am I?" Kara asked looking towards her mother.

"Only if someone makes you mad apparently, which shows you got the family instincts about defending yourself." Jade said after getting handed a bowl.

"No offense Jade, but how did you even find out what happened?" Zatanna asked.

"Roy." the assassin said simply.

"I don't want to know what it took for you to get that out of him." Artemis said as they heard a knock on the door but Jade just grinned….almost as big as the one on her Cheshire mask.

"I got it." Kara said getting up.

"So what exactly do you guys do on nights like this?" Jade asked looking at her sister.

"Watch movies and joke around." Zatanna replied.

"Not with this many people though," Artemis said as she saw Barbara and another redheaded woman at the front door, "What are you and Shayera doing here, Barbara?"

"Besides wanting to come see Kara, the Scarab went back online about hour ago." Barbara said as the two entered the apartment.

"Did it say why it attacked my daughter?" Artemis asked.

"According to it, Kara was giving off the same energy signature as one of the Reach's Magnetic Field Disruptors," the woman said as her and Barbara took off their coats, "Thing is, we checked the scanners and it wasn't Kara that it was picking up. It was something she had on her."

"Like the ring Hal gave me?" Kara asked quietly.

"What ring?" Artemis asked looking at her daughter. The young girl reached into her pocket and pulled out what looked like a clear crystal ring.

"He said I might be able to focus my powers better if I channeled them through this." she said holding it up.

"Leave it to Hal to hand a child that." Shayera said.

"What is it?" Kara asked.

"It's an obsidian gem," Shayera said looking at the young girl, "They're found on a planet in his sector."

"What are they used for?" Artemis asked.

"Normally, they're used to store light," Shayera said taking a seat, "But by the looks of this one, it's designed like a lantern ring."

"So a Lantern turned my niece into a Lantern?" Jade asked not sounding too happy.

"But I'm not a lantern." Kara quietly said looking down.

"Actually, Kara's right. She isn't a lantern," Shayera said looking at the assassin, "That ring is clear. Which means that is more like a power indicator. This way we know how much power she has."

"And that's not what is giving off that MFD energy signature," Barbara said checking a holo-screen that was being projected from her watch, "It's something coming from her backpack."

"Kara, what's in your backpack?" Artemis asked looking at her daughter.

"Just a visor that Bart gave me," the young girl said before going over and pulling it out, "He said he was wearing this when my father died."

"Leave it to Bart…" Artemis said as a tear slid down her face.

"Why did he keep this?"

"Your father had a thing for collecting souvenirs on our missions to remember them….guess after Beast Boy it passed to Bart."

"Want me to hurt him next time I see him?" Shayera asked looking at the archer.

"Regardless if you hurt him or not, that visor is giving off a trace amount of energy readings." Barbara stated.

"Enough with the shop talk," Jade said as her gaze shifted from her sister to her niece and back, "Phones and computers off till after the movie, alright?"

"Sounds like the best idea I've heard so far." Zatanna said before pulling out her cell and kicking it to silent.

"Only if you agree to teach Kara your royal flush card trick, Jade," Artemis said as she wiped the tears from her eyes.

"And why would you want her to learn that trick?" Jade asked.

"Doesn't Roy do a monthly poker game with some of the other league members." the blonde said with an evil grin.

"She'll know it by his next game." Jade said with a slight laugh.

Once everyone was seated, Artemis hit play on the remote. For the next couple of hours, the six of them sat and watched different movies. It wasn't until the end credits of the second movie that Kara started to nod off.

"Getting tired, sweetie?" Artemis asked looking at her daughter.

"A little." the young girl said before yawning.

"Go get ready for bed then," Artemis said brushing her daughter's hair back from her eyes, "I'll come tuck you in in a few."

Barbara waited till the young girl had left the room before saying, "I am so glad M'gann and Cassie are not here."

"Don't go there," Artemis said standing up, "Jade was bad enough the first night Kara was here."

"But you were so cute doting over Kara the way you did." Jade said smiling.

"I did not dote on her." Artemis said as she started to pick the different bowls up.

"Twenty bucks says she still does." Shayera said looking at Barbara.

"I do not dote on my daughter." Artemis said glaring at the two redheads.

"Truth Artemis," Zatanna said as all eyes focused on the former archer.

"Can we not talk about this?" Artemis asked before heading to the kitchen.

"Mom had to teach me everything," they heard Kara say. Everyone looked over to the hallway entrance as the young girl entered before continuing, "My foster parents hardly taught me anything. I really didn't know how to use silverware correctly, take a bath right, any of that stuff. My foster mom would tell me constantly that I couldn't do anything right. I started to believe them up until mom found me. Between her and Barbara, they saved me; because I honestly thought about doing what she told me to do every time I made a mistake."

"What did she tell you to do, Kara?" Shayera asked.

The young girl was quiet for a few seconds before Jade said, "You don't want to know. Trust me, you never want to know."

Kara barely had time to look at her aunt when she suddenly felt her mother's arms wrap around her from behind.

"Don't you ever do that," Artemis said in a low whisper, "You belong here with me. Understand? This is your home."

"You know, Cottontail, it wasn't just your life that was saved," Jade said as she smiled, "I think you saved your mom that day as well."

"I did?" Kara asked.

"Yeah, you did," Artemis said smiling, "Because it was just me and Brucely here before you came into my life."

"And by the looks of it, you've made each other's lives better." Zatanna said.

"And we all need to get going," Barbara said glancing at the clock, "Some of us have work tomorrow."

"And the rest of us have class," Artemis said with a yawn, "Thanks for coming everyone."

"You're welcome, and we should do this again next week." Shayera said getting up.

"I think I might know someone that would let us use his place for this," Barbara said as she stood up, "Let me talk to him and I will let you know."

"Alright, later guys." Artemis said as she watched her friends grab their jackets before leaving.

"Bye everyone," Kara said before the door closed.

"And then there was three," Jade said looking at her sister, "Go tuck Cottontail in, Alice. I'll take care of clean up till you get back."

"Why are you calling me Cottontail?" Kara asked looking at her aunt.

"Besides the fact I call your mother Alice and you remind me of the white rabbit from Alice in Wonderland," Jade said standing up, "It kind of fits since you usually have something that has a bunny on it. Besides, I had a thing for the Cheshire Cat when I was younger."

"Go home, Aunt Jade. You need to be laid." Kara said before heading to her room.

Artemis tried not to laugh as she stood up and said, "Never thought I would hear her say that."

"I'm going to have to talk to Roy AND Nightwing later…"

"Don't kill Nightwing, I mean I need him alive if he's the one Barb's going to ask to use his place."

"Very well, but I'm still talking to him."

"I'll be right back." Artemis said and with that she went to tuck Kara in.


	10. Chapter Ten: Static Electricity

Chapter Ten

Static Electricity...

After the Scarab's little outburst, Artemis made it a point to stick around to make sure it didn't happen again. Much to her surprise though was the progress the young girl had made since she began working with the Lanterns. Each of the constructs Kara was creating looked real enough to pass as the actual items they were supposed to be. But as she watched her daughter, Artemis realized that the ring the girl had on would flicker from time to time when her mentor wasn't looking.

'What are you up too?' she thought crossing her arms.

"You noticed it too, didn't you?" Bart said from where he stood next to her, "There is a reason for that."

"Then start talking." Artemis said never taking her eyes off her daughter.

"Kara can absorb natural light easier then artificial," he said as the two watched one of the young girls construct slowly fade out, "Every one of the constructs she's been making is from light she's absorbed."

"My kid's solar powered, great," she said with a sigh, "What happens when she runs out of power?"

"She'll be as normal as you and Babs." he said looking at her briefly.

"How do you know all this stuff about my kid?" Artemis asked looking at him.

"She was one of the ones that helped me get my speed under control when I was her age." he said looking back at the girl.

She was quiet for a few seconds before looking back at her daughter and asking, "Anything else I need to know about Kara's powers?"

"Just what I know about the version of her from my time." he replied as he smiled slightly, "As long as there is some sort of light; she can do anything with it."

Artemis started to snicker before saying, "I'd believe it."

Bart looked over to see what appeared to be a white construct version of Batman and Superman playing ping pong behind Hal Jordon's back.

"I think she's getting bored." he said trying not to laugh.

"Hal's not the best when it comes to explaining how to create constructs by the looks of it," Artemis said smiling.

"Actually, he's trying to teach her how to conserve her power." Bart said smiling.

"By making her create two construct Leaguers playing ping pong?" she asked.

"Try lecture." he said before the training area got a little lighter as the construct disappeared.

"Worst thing about that was she wasn't even using what she's been absorbing. That was just her manipulating the light around her."

Artemis stood there stunned as she watched her daughter for a few seconds before asking, "That was just the light around her?"

"Yeah, she ran out of juice about half an hour ago," he said before Kara came walking over, "Nice job on the constructs, squirt."

"Don't call me that." Kara said glaring at the speedster.

"You're going to make her mad if you keep calling her that, Bart." Artemis said looking at the speedster.

"You better do as she says, Bart," Hal Jordan said as he walked up, "Kara has already thrown you at least seven times since she arrived here an hour ago for calling her that."

"I counted eight." Artemis said with a slight smirk.

"Not my fault she's cute when she's mad." Bart said with a shrug.

"You are never dating my daughter," Artemis said before the speedster was thrown across the room by a white construct of Conner.

"I thought you were out of power." Hal said looking at the young girl.

"She can manipulate the light around her, Hal. Remember?" Artemis asked as the speedster stopped next to her.

"Hadn't been told that part." the Lantern said before walking off.

"He was on the phone with his girlfriend when he was being told about Kara." Bart said shaking his head.

"That doesn't surprise me," Artemis said before kneeling in front of her daughter, "Ready to go home, sweetie?"

"More than ready," Kara said before noticing someone standing a few feet away, "But can I show you something first?"

"Ok, but make it quick." Artemis said standing up.

"Ok, mom," the young girl said before skipping off. Artemis watched her daughter walk over towards where the Flash was talking to another League member.

"Hi Flash," Kara said as she stopped next to him.

The Scarlet Speedster looked down and smiled saying, "Hey Kara. What's up?"

"About to head home with mom," she replied as she started to rub the tips of her middle finger and thumb of her right hand together, "Who are you talking too?"

"You can call me Captain Marvel, little one." the other Leaguer said smiling at the young girl.

"Cool, I'm Kara," she said holding her hand out to him.

"It's nice to meet you, Kara" he said as he went to shake her hand.

The sound of a small explosion echoed through the Watchtower as their hands touched followed by a quick burst of light. Once the smoke cleared, a surprised look appeared on the girl's face as she saw that Captain Marvel had changed to a teenager with a dumb founded look on his face.

She slowly looked up at her uncle and asked, "Does he always do that when he meets people, or is it a performance issue?"

"I think it's a little of both." Flash said before started to chuckle.

"Thought so," she said before walking back over to her mother, "And don't call me little."

"H-how did you do that?" Artemis asked once her daughter was close enough.

"Static electricity." Kara said calmly.

"That wasn't static electricity," Bart said as he watched the teenager return to his alternate self of Captain Marvel, "I think Kara just tapped into the speed force."

"The speed what?" Kara and her mother asked as the two looked at him.

"It's where we speedsters get our power from," he replied as he slowly looked at the young girl, "Kara, how did you do that?"

"I just rubbed my middle finger against my thumb," Kara replied a little nervously, "Am I in trouble?"

"You're not in trouble, sweetie," Artemis assured her daughter before turning her attention to the speedster, "What's going on, Bart?"

"Kara shouldn't have been able to do that," he said looking at his partner, "Unless she can use light to replicate other hero's powers."

"I can?" Kara asked as she slowly looked at the floor.

"It would explain how you got wings and hit caused damaged to Scarab that day." he said looking at her.

"Which means you're more awesome than I thought." Artemis said picking her daughter up and hugging her close.

"You're awesome too, mom." Kara said returning the hug.

"I'll agree with you about that squirt." Bart said smiling.

"He'll never learn….." Artemis said as she watched the speedster get launched across the room via a construct catapult.

"He's a tool." Kara said resting her head on her mother's shoulder.

"I have to admit, I think the Conner construct was the best way to send him flying," Artemis said with a laugh before looking at her daughter, "Getting tired?"

"Just hungry." the young girl replied as she stomach growled.

"We'll stop on the way home and get something. Don't worry." Artemis said as she started walking towards the Zeta tubes.

"I think you mean on the way to my place," Barbara said walking up beside her friends, "Tonight is Friday after all."

"I don't know, Babs," Artemis said glancing at her daughter, "Kara is pretty tired."

"I'm more hungry than tired." Kara said perking up almost instantly.

"And is getting sick of throwing Bart," Barbara said with a slight laugh, "Well, come on. Zee said she would meet us at my place with dinner."

"Please don't let it be Chinese." Kara said as they continued walking.

"Long story," Artemis said setting her daughter down.

"I'd believe it and it's not Chinese." Barbara assured the young girl.

"So is the rest of the Redheaded League going to be there?" Artemis jokingly asked.

"Nope," Barbara said with a slight smile, "Shayera is going out with Carter tonight."

"Who's Carter?" Kara asked looking at her mother.

"Her husband." Artemis said as the three stepped toward the Zeta Tubes.

"Oh, is he Thana…" Kara said, still sometimes unable to pronounce Thanagarian.

The heroes laughed. "Yes, sweetie, he's a Thanagarian just like Shayera."

"Okay, but what about M'gann?"

"She and Conner are still working on their relationship; even though it's becoming stronger they still need some work before they're back to how they were, so it's just us and Zee." Artemis said.

"Okay; I'm SOOO hungry, even just manipulating the light around me is draining." Kara stated.

"You get first dibs on what you want." Barbara remarked as she typed in their destination and with that the three ladies headed into the Tubes.

"Recognized: Tigress; B-Zero Seven. Batgirl; B-One Six. Kara: A-Two Nine."


	11. Chapter Eleven: End of a Nightmare

Chapter Eleven

End of a Nightmare...

There were times when Artemis was glad she had Jade for a sister. Unfortunately, she wasn't sure this was one of those times yet. The blonde had been alerted by her sister to some chatter she had been picking up on. It seemed to revolve around a prison break attempt at Belle Reve prison. After relaying the warning to the rest of the League, Artemis decided to do something unexpected: to end a nightmare.

Thus is how she found herself in the last place she ever wanted to be; in the visitor's area of Belle Reve Prison. She exhaled slowly as she looked towards the clock.

'It's almost ten o'clock here, which means it should be almost eleven in Gotham," she thought looking towards the prisoner entrance door, 'Kara should just be waking up at Barbara's now.' She didn't have much more time to think as the door opened and two guards escorted a man she knew all too well into the room.

"Just as a reminder, ma'am," one of the guards stated, "If there is anything you want him to have, please hand it to one of the guards as you leave. Once he sits down, pick up the phone to your left to talk. The glass divider is specially designed to stop a bullet from a sniper rifle. You will have one hour to tell him anything you need to."

"It won't take me an hour to tell him what I need to." she said as she watched her father sit on the other side of the glass. She waited a few seconds before picking up the phone.

"I'm surprised to see you here, baby girl," Lawrence Crock said with a surprised smile, "I take it you missed your dear old dad."

She blinked once as she stared at her father for a few seconds before saying, "Actually, I came to deliver a message."

"From who, the bat?" he asked.

She slowly shook her head before saying, "Jade."

"And what did your sister ask you to tell me?" he asked sounding a little amused.

"Just that your precious rep no longer exists," she said taking a piece of paper from her purse, "It seems someone gave the Feds access to your computer and email accounts. And it's all thanks to a little piece of paper…one you signed that says you will turn over any and all information regarding the League of Shadows in return for a reduced sentence."

"Wait a minute, I never signed any such paper." he said.

"Actually, you did," she said holding up the paper, "This one right here. I have to tell you, dad, for you to agree to fork over any and all information about the League of Shadows in order to escape the death penalty is a pretty stupid move on your part." Her father smirked as he said,

"Well jokes on them, baby girl. Without my password, they can't even get into my system."

"You mean the same one you've used since Jade and I were little," she said putting the paper back in her purse, "Because mom gave it to the FBI the instant they asked if she knew it."

She looked at her father and smiled at his shocked expression before saying, "Judging by the look on your face, you never thought about changing that password. Huh, sucks to be you. Now, you're probably wondering why mom did that. Allow me to explain." She pulled a photo of Kara out of her purse and turned it so he could see the young girl before saying, "I think you know Kara, your biological granddaughter, and this picture is as close as you will ever get to her again. If I find out you escaped from here; not only will I help Jade track you down; but I will hand you over to Ra's Al Ghul myself."

"You're bluffing…"

She put the photo away before standing up. "You were a piss pour father and I hope you enjoy what little life you have left," she said before hanging the phone up and walking to the door. The guard opened it long enough to let her out as Lawrence started pounding on the glass.

"Goodbye….Lawrence." she said as she walked towards the exit. It was until she had left the main prison that she realized something felt off.

'Something's not right,' she thought glancing around the parking lot. It wasn't until she got to her rental car that she realized what was wrong. "You didn't have to follow me out to my rental, Guard," she said as she turned around to face one of the guards, "But then again you're not a real prison guard, are you?"

"I'm surprised you were able to sense me," the guard said as he pointed his firearm at her.

"I saw your reflection off of one of the cars," she said before taking out her keys, "Now what do you want?"

"I am under orders to eliminate all that revealed my master's secrets." he replied calmly.

"So you're going to use the prison break attempt to kill me while one of the other "guards" tries to kills a man my mom, sister, or I want NOTHING to do with," she said leaning against her rental, "All because of a document he signed. Hate to burst your bubble but you really are an idiot."

"I'm not the one that parked in a blind spot in the parking lot of a prison where a breakout is about to happen," the guard said pulling the hammer back on his gun.

"But you are the one that followed the daughter, who turned hero, of a member of the Shadows into said blind spot thinking she is alone," she said before a red and yellow streak began running around the guard.

"You're late." she said as the Flash came to a stop next to her holding the man's gun.

"Yeah, I was taking care of this guy's buddies," Barry said quickly disassembling the gun, "And I had one loose end to tie up."

She smiled as she saw the guard had been hog tied with a piece of duct tape over his mouth.

"Anyway, you ready to go?" he asked.

"In a minute," she said pulling a paper form her purse. She knelt in front of the fake guard and held it so he could see it as she said, "This is a copy of the document Sportsmaster signed that says he would tell of the Shadows' secrets in exchange for only life in prison. Now I'm going to leave this with you so you can take it back to Ra's and I want you to tell him that as far as Cheshire and the rest of her family are concerned; Lawrence Crock doesn't exist. If a single Shadow comes after any of us; I will destroy every Lazarus pit on the planet before I take your master's head."

She tucked the paper inside the guard's shirt before walking over to the speedster and said, "Now, I'm ready."

"Then let's get you out of here." the speedster said before scooping her up and took off running.

She closed her eyes as the world rushed past her. While she had loved it when Wally ran with her like this, she had found that speed in which both Barry and Bart traveled at was a little too much for her.

"You ok, Artemis?" he asked as he finally came to a stop outside a familiar door.

"Not really used to traveling like that anymore," she said as he set her down, "Thanks for the lift, Flash."

"Not a problem." he said before speeding off. She went to knock on the door but stopped as her cell went off.

"This is Artemis." she said answering it.

"Hi mom." came Kara's voice over the phone.

"Hello sweetie," Artemis said smiling, "Having fun?"

"Uh-huh," her daughter replied happily, "I was just calling to see if you were still going to join Barbara and me for breakfast."

"I will be as soon as someone opens the door." Artemis replied with a slight laugh.

"You're here?" Kara asked as the door swung open.

"Thanks to Barry," Artemis said as she stepped inside, "Thanks for watching Kara, Babs and sorry I'm so late, but that was the only appointment I could get to see him on such short notice."

"My pleasure, and I get why you had to do it." the redhead said as the girl in question came over and hugged her mother.

Artemis put her phone away before picking her daughter up and hugging her saying,

"Hey sweetie. Missed you,"

"Missed you too," Kara said returning the hug.

"And before you ask; yes, she did have fun last night," Barbara said before heading to the kitchen.

"I believe you," Artemis said following her friend, "So what all did you two do?"

"I met Barbara's dad." Kara answered.

"How is Jim?" Artemis asked as she sat in a chair at the kitchen table with her daughter in her lap.

"He's still kicking and being driven nuts by a certain bat," Barbara said looking over at her friend, "Are you sure you're ok, Artemis?"

"Yeah, why do you ask?" the blonde asked.

"Because your hands are shaking." Barbara said, walking over.

"They are?" Artemis asked as she looked down at her hands to fine her friend was right, "Well this is new."

"Mom, what's wrong?" Kara asked sounding frightened.

Artemis looked her daughter in the eyes before saying, "Nothing's wrong, Kara, but I do think it's time for Tigress to retire."

"Good," Kara said as she hugged her mother. Artemis returned the hug as a single tear slid down her cheek.


	12. Chapter Twelve: Grounded

Chapter Twelve

Grounded...

Ever since she had made the decision to retire from hero work two months prior, Artemis felt more relaxed than she ever had. Yet even when she had been a hero, she never thought she would be in this spot: sitting in the principal's office with her daughter.

"I honestly don't believe you did this." Principal Blackthorn said as he looked at the two.

"You're not the only one." Artemis said sighing.

"What caused this?" he asked leaning back in his chair.

"Mr. Groff said he was going to teach my class self-defense." Artemis said looking at the principal.

"And you took offense to that?" he asked looking at her.

"He is not certified to teach anyone any kind of self-defense," she replied.

"Which lead to the altercation between you two?" he asked.

"No. It was him saying that you can tell when a parent hasn't raised their kids right when the child doesn't want to learn how to fight." she retorted.

"And it was then you challenged him to a sparring match and proceeded to beat the living crap out of him." he said as he reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Not my fault he was stupid enough to accept my challenge." she replied.

"Regardless, Ms. Crock," he said looking at her, "You cannot go around beating up teachers that say stuff like that."

"Hey, he started it!" she yelled looking at him.

"I don't care who started it!" he hollered back as he stood up, "You're lucky I don't fire you for this! Got it?"

"Yes sir." she said sulking in her chair.

Principal Blackthorn let out a low sigh before looking at Kara and said, "Please tell me she isn't like this at home."

"First time, sir," Kara said.

The principal started to smile a little as he said, "I understand it's hard raising a single parent alone, but you need to make sure she doesn't do this again, Kara."

"I promise this won't happen again sir." she said looking at her mother.

"Wait a minute." Artemis said as she looked from her daughter to the principal.

"Still, I'm going to have to send you and your mother home for the rest of the day." he said.

"Why are you two treating me like a kid and she's the adult?" Artemis asked.

"Because she wasn't the one that broke another teacher's arm," he said answering her question, "Now go home; both of you."

"Yes sir," Kara said as she stood up, "Let's go mom."

"This isn't right," Artemis said before getting up and following her daughter out of the office. After stopping long enough to get their stuff from the classroom, they went to the parking lot where Artemis's car was.

It wasn't until they had left the school parking lot that Kara asked, "You know the gym teacher was wrong, right?"

"I know Kara," Artemis said as they went down the road, "I think I'm more upset about you and the principal acting like I was a kid."

"It was kind of funny." Kara giggled.

"Just promise me you won't tell anyone about that." Artemis said as they stopped at a traffic light.

"That might be a problem," Kara said as her mother's phone started ringing.

Artemis looked at her daughter as she put her phone on speaker before saying, "Hello."

"Artemis Lian Crock!" the blonde's mother yelled over the phone, "You broke another teacher's arm."

"Mom, how did you find out?" Artemis asked surprised.

"Your boss called me." Paula replied sounding upset.

"He had you on speaker….." Artemis said sighing.

"That doesn't matter," her mother said dismissively, "I just want to know if you just broke the one arm."

"Just the one, mom," Artemis said sighing.

"You should've broken them both." her mother stated.

"Grandma!" Kara said shocked as she looked at the phone.

"I'm sorry, Kara, but that man was wrong," Paula said apologetically, "You're mother has done an incredible job raising you."

"Thanks mom." Artemis said smiling a little.

"You're welcome, Artemis," Paula said trying to calm down, "I'm still not happy about you doing that."

"I'm not happy with myself about that either." Artemis said before she started driving again.

"Well, since you two now have a free afternoon, what are you going to do?" Paula asked.

"Not sure yet," Artemis said as her phone beeped, "I'm going to have to call you back, mom. I have another call in." She switched the call over and said, "Hello."

"I need you and Kara to get to the Watchtower now." a familiar voice ordered.

"I'm retired, remember Kaldur?" Artemis asked.

"I am sorry, Artemis, but this is an emergency," the Atlantean replied, "and you know I wouldn't call you if this wasn't absolutely necessary."

"Mr. Kaldur, sir," Kara said as her mother turned down a side street, "Why do you need my mom?"

"I'll explain once you two get here." he said before ending the call.

"Do you think something's wrong?" Kara asked after a few minutes.

Artemis pulled her car into a parking garage before saying, "Possibly, Kaldur is a strong leader, and when he says something like he did about the emergency part…..."

"Okay."

Once they parked the car, they went over to run down phone booth and stepped inside.

"Recognized: Tigress; B-Zero Seven. Kara: A-Two Nine."

As they arrived on the Watchtower, Artemis let out a startled yell as M'gann flew up and hugged her.

"Are you two ok?" the Martian asked pulling back to look at her friend.

"We're fine, M'gann," Artemis said with a slight laugh, "What exactly is going on?"

"Something trashed a Wayne Enterprises facility last night." Batman said walking up.

"Ok, but what does that have to deal with me and Kara?" she asked as Kara hid behind her.

"The camera's and sensors picked up a strange energy phenomenon at Wayne Enterprises while you were having dinner with the West." he stated calmly.

"Maybe the buildings haunted." Kara said quietly peeking out from behind her mother.

"There's no such thing as ghost." the dark knight said looking down at the young girl.

"Right…and aliens don't exist." Artemis said crossing her arms and remembered the spirit of Greta Hayes AKA Secret. "But why did you have us come here?"

"Wayne Enterprise was the latest in a string of labs that have been hit." he said as his eyes narrowed slightly.

"Still, what does that have to deal…with….Oh no," Artemis said shaking her head, "I am not letting you use me as bait. Forget it."

"Your name was burned across one of the walls in the main lab," the dark knight stated simply.

"We think whatever it is may have some sort connection to you." Kaldur said placing a hand on his friends shoulder.

"Um, mom can't help." Kara said looking up at the dark knight.

"And why is that?" Batman asked, looking at the girl.

"She's grounded for breaking my gym teacher's arm," she said stepping out from behind her mother, "If you want her to help, then you have to do her punishment."

"This takes precedence over any punishment." he said.

"According to whom?" she asked moving in front of her mother, "A man dressed like a bat with his underwear over his pants? I don't think so. My mom was never part of the Justice League; just your covert team and you turned control of it completely over to Kaldur. If you want my mom's help, then it will cost you; largely because she got in trouble today. And since she is the one in trouble, I get to pick the punishment."

"Which is?" Artemis asked looking down at her daughter. Kara looked up at her mother and smiled slightly before saying, "For one week, pink is the new black. If Batman wants your help, then he wears pink instead of black for a week."

M'gann tried to stifle a giggle as everyone slowly looked at the Dark Knight.

"Well, Batman," Kara said taking her mother's hand in hers, "How bad do you want my mom's help?"

The room was silent for a few seconds before Batman simple said, "Fine."

"I don't believe that just happened." M'gann said after the League member walk away.

"I can," Artemis said before picking up her daughter and giving her a hug, "She is my daughter after all."

"Never let me do that again." Kara whispered returning the hug as she buried her face into her mother's shoulder.

"Kara, are you ok?" Artemis asked with a slight laugh.

"I think she scared herself by standing up to the 'mighty' Batman." Kaldur said gently placing a hand on Kara's back.

"And she proved she's as gutsy as her mother." M'gann said smiling.

"Well, let me know when the details are planned; I need to call mom back….since my chewing out was interrupted."

"My apologizes, Artemis, but this WAS an emergency."

"I know, Kaldur, and I'll let mom know too." Artemis said as she stood up holding Kara.

"Mommy, can I come with you to help?"

"On the mission…..I don't know, we'll have to see if you're needed."

"Okay. I'm hungry….."

"Alright, let's go meet up with mom and have a late lunch."

"Yay."

With that they headed through the Zeta Tubes and returned to Earth.


	13. Chapter Thirteen: Ghost

Chapter Thirteen

Ghost...

From the different reports that had come in, the Wayne Enterprise R&D lab in National City was one of the four labs that hadn't been hit by the strange phenomenon. The plan had been simple; Artemis, Bart, Mal, and Karen would patrol the building in an attempt to find out what trashed the other labs. Because of this being a possible overnight mission, Zatanna agreed to watch Kara until it was over. As Artemis walked the halls with Bart, her mind kept wondering. It wasn't until she felt something touch her shoulder that she realized the speedster had been talking to her.

"You ok, Tigress?" he asked sounding a little worried.

"Huh? Oh sorry, I'm just a little worried about Kara." she said glancing at him.

"I wouldn't worry about her too much. She'll be fine." he said smiling.

They were quiet for a few minutes before Artemis stopped and looked behind her. "Something wrong, Artemis?" he asked looking at her.

"Shut up." she said walking back towards one of the rooms they had passed. She started to reach for the door to the room when a loud bang came from inside.

"Kid Flash to Guardian, we have possible movement in lab twenty-two on the third floor." Bart said into his communicator.

"We're on our way." Mal replied.

Artemis slowly pushed the door open as a strange blue glow came from inside the room as she drew her crossbow. Staying low, she slipped into the room and looked towards the light.

'What in the world?' she thought.

The outline of a figure could be made out that was standing in front of one of the computers. Being as quiet as possible, she reached up and pressed a button on her mask before the figure suddenly turned.

'It can't be.' she thought as her eyes widened. She started to lower her crossbow when Mal followed by Karen burst into the room.

The figure seemed to say something before running from the room.

"I got it." Bart said before running after it.

"Tigress, you ok?" Mal asked kneeling next to her.

"I'm fine," she said pressing the button again, "Kid Flash, status report."

The line was silent for a few seconds before they heard the speedster say, "I about had him, but he disappeared."

"What the heck was that thing?" Karen asked as she reverted back to her normal size.

"I'm not sure," Artemis said pressing the button on her mask, "But it seemed to be interested in whatever was on that computer."

Bart zipped into the room and started looking at the computer screen before saying, "Uh guys, I think you're going to want to see this."

"Save the info and get it to the Watchtower," Artemis said getting to her feet, "Kid Flash, where did you lose that thing?"

"I lost him at the stairs," the speedster said looking at her, "Sorry, Tigress."

"Don't worry. Let's just get this info back to the Watchtower and figure out our next move," she said putting her crossbow away. She walked out into the hall and over towards the stairwell.

"What were you looking at, Wally?" she asked quietly as she placed a hand on the door. She closed her eyes for a few seconds before asking, "So what was that thing looking at?"

"Info on a Reach MFD this place has," Mal said walking up, "You sure you're ok? You look pretty spooked."

She slowly looked over at him saying, "This is probably going to sound crazy, but I think that thing may be Wally."

"Wally?" he asked surprised, "Are you sure?"

"Positive," she said walking over to him, "I got a good look at that thing, and I think that it's Wally trying to find a way back."

"No offense, but I wouldn't put it past him." Mal said as Bart appeared next to him.

"Bumblebee finished downloading that file and is ready to go when you are." the speedster said.

"We're not leaving," she said looking at him, "Kid Flash, I want you to take that info to the Watchtower and get back here ASAP. Guardian, Bumblebee and I will continue to check the remaining floors."

"I'll be back in a flash." the speedster said before running off as Karen landed on her boyfriend's shoulder.

"Guardian, finish checking the floor you were on then join Bumblebee on the next floor up," Artemis stated checking her crossbow, "If you find that thing; observe it. Do not engage."

"Watch your backs." Karen said before the three split up. Artemis looked back towards the lab for a few seconds before continuing down the hall. The continued to check the building for another hour after Bart had returned. Even with the speedsters return, the building remained quiet for the rest of the evening.

After stopping at the Watchtower to relay what all had happened, Artemis took the Zeta Tubes to Zatanna's place. Yet even as the blonde walked up to her friend's door, she could help but feel as if she was being watched.

'I wonder if that really was Wally.' she thought as she pulled out the spare key the magician had given her. She had barely started to insert it in the lock when she felt something touch her shoulder. She spun around to find no one there. "Get it together, Artemis," she said before heading inside.

After making sure the door was locked, she cheeked on her daughter before heading to the living room to where the couch was. Once she got comfortable, she slowly closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep. When she woke a few hours later, she could help but smile as she saw her daughter looking at her.

"Hey sweetie," she said quietly as she smiled.

"Hi mom," Kara said smiling, "I missed you."

"Missed you too," Artemis said sitting up.

"So did you see it?" Kara asked sitting next to her mother.

"See what?" Artemis asked stretching.

"The ghost," Kara said a little excitedly.

"What is with you and ghosts as of late?" her mother asked looking at her.

"I think it would be fun to see a ghost." Kara said as Zatanna entered the room.

"Roy introduced her to some of the different ghost hunting programs the last time you let Jade watch her." the magician said sitting in a chair.

"I'm going to shave Mufasa bald." Artemis said leaning back against the couch.

Kara cocked her head as if not to understand. "What?"

"That's what she looks like when she wears her Cheshire mask, Mufasa from The Lion King."

"Oh, okay."

"But did you run into what trashed those other labs?" Zatanna asked.

"We ran into something." Artemis said telling them about what had happened.

Once she had finished, Kara seemed to be glowing as she asked, "Did you get a picture of it?"

"I did and I'll show you once you tone your glow down." Artemis said trying to shield her eyes a little.

"Sorry." Kara said as the glow she was emanating reduced.

"Don't worry. You'll get it under control eventually." Artemis said pulling her phone out.

She brought up an image of what she had seen the night prior and showed her daughter. Kara's eyes widened as she looked at the image then said, "I want to catch it."

"No," her mother said before showing the image to her friend.

"Where did you get this picture?" Zatanna asked.

"That is a still shot from a camera Robin installed in my mask." Artemis said before looking at the picture.

"So what did Kaldur and Batman say about this?" the magician asked.

"They said they'd take a look at the video and let me know." Artemis replied.

"I still think it would be cool to catch a ghost." Kara said laying her head on her mother's shoulder.

"Remind me to tell you about Greta one of these days." Artemis said smiling.

"Who's Greta?" Kara asked looking at her mother.

"That is a Secret." Zatanna said with a laugh.

"And it makes a great bedtime story," Artemis said bumping into her daughter, "So who's hungry?"

"Lunch will be here in a few," Zatanna said setting a duffle bag on the coffee table, "You know where the shower is and you're buying dinner."

"Fine by me." Artemis said as she grabbed the bag and headed out to shower up after the long night she had.


	14. Chapter Fourteen: Headache

Chapter Fourteen

Headache...

A few weeks had passed since Artemis's run in at STAR Labs. While she didn't act like it fazed her, Kara knew that her mother seemed shaken for some reason. The young girl would try to ask her mother about it from time to time, but her mother always found a way to change the subject. As Kara finished training with Green Lantern (Jon Stewart), she found herself thinking about the image she had been shown. From what she remembered about it; the figured seemed almost familiar, like she had seen him before.

As she waited on her mother, she walked over to the training area and sat just outside the training floor.

"You ok, Kara?" Barbara asked sitting next to her.

"Yeah, just trying to figure something out," Kara said sighing.

"I take it that it has something to do with what happened to those labs, am I right?" Barbara asked.

"Mom seemed like she was spooked after she ran into that thing," the young girl said looking towards the training area, "The picture she showed me kind of looks like someone I've seen before."

"That's weird." Barbara said before bringing up a holo-screen.

"What are you doing?" Kara asked looking at her friend.

"Trying to see what all this fuss is about," Barbara said before the video form Artemis's mask cam started playing, "What in the?" They watched the video once through before Barbara restarted it.

"I see what you mean about being familiar." she said hitting pause after a few seconds.

"I think it might be someone mom knows." Kara said as Barbara adjusted the video to get a clearer image.

"It does look somewhat familiar." the two heard from behind them.

Kara looked behind her to see Shayera kneeling behind them as Barbara said, "I think you're right. I just wish I could tighten this image up."

"You mean like this?" Kara asked as a construct version of the figure from the video appeared a few feet from them.

"You're getting better at your constructs." Shayera said as her and Barbara looked at it.

"Thanks." the young girl said.

"Actually, it's perfect, thank you Kara." Barbara said getting up and walking over to it with a smile.

"Welcome." Kara stated, returning the smile

The redhead then walked around the construct once as Kara said, "It kind of looks like he's trying to blow himself up."

Barbara snapped her fingers before asking, "Kara, do you think you can bring all the smaller pieces together?"

"I can try." the young girl said. She let out a slow breath as she focused on the image. They watched as the figure started to come together to form a clearer image.

"Kara, I think I know why this freaked your mom out." Barbara said as the last piece fell into place.

"It looks like Kid Flash," Kara said a little puzzled, "But how? Bart was with mom that night."

"That's because it's not Bart," Shayera said placing a hand on the young girl's shoulder, "It's the original Kid Flash."

Kara's eyes widened slightly before they heard someone say, "Cool construct, Kara."

She looked over to see Robin and Conner walking towards them. "Thanks Robin." she said quietly before looking back at the image.

"I thought Kara was done with her training today." Conner said.

"She's waiting on Artemis to pick her up," Barbara replied before looking over at her fellow teammates, "Hey Robin, do you know what that lab was doing with that Reach MFD?"

"As strange as this may sound, they were trying to figure out a way to reverse engineer it," Robin said bringing up a holo-screen of the device, "When those things went active, they started causing natural disasters across the planet."

"And if they can reverse engineer one of them, they could possibly stop those kind of disasters," Barbara said walking over to look at the screen.

"Ok, but what was that thing looking at though?" Conner asked.

"Wally," Kara said as a tear slid down her cheek, "That thing is Wally….dad."

Everyone was silent as they looked at the young girl for a few seconds before Robin said, "If that's the case, then he may have been looking at a way to come back, but that is almost impossible."

"What do you mean impossible?" Shayera asked.

"Reverse the polarity possibly," he replied watching the young girl, "Kara, how do you know about Wally?"

Kara slowly looked over at her friends before saying, "Mom said the other half of my Lego's came from him."

"Your Lego's?" Shayera asked.

"I'll explain later," Conner said before looking at the young detective, "How do we reverse it?"

"It's not as easy as it sounds," Robin said looking at the screen, "We would need to know what the energy frequency of the chrysalis before we can reverse it. And that is something we don't have."

"But we do." Kara said with a huge grin before taking her backpack off.

"We do?" he asked.

The young girl nodded as she started looking for something in her bag as Barbara said, "Bart's visor. Of course! Scarab said it was giving off the same energy signature as the MFD."

"Which means?" Conner asked.

"There might be a chance to bring Wally back." Shayera said as she started to smile.

"Now hang on everyone," Robin said as the screen disappeared, "I don't even know if this is even possible."

"But you're the boy wonder, aren't you?" Kara asked as she walked over and held out the visor to him. He went to reply to the comment but stopped as he saw the girl was on the verge of tears. "Can't you please try to bring my dad home?" the young girl asked.

"I'll…see what I can do," he said before taking the visor. "Although Dick's better at this then I am….I mean he's the original Boy Wonder after all…"

"Doesn't matter…Thank you." she said before giving him a hug.

"Don't thank me just yet, ok?" he replied as he placed a hand on her head.

"Ok." she said taking a step back as she looked at him.

"Don't worry, Kara," Barbara said as the young detective walked towards the Zeta Tubes, "We'll figure out how to bring him back."

"I trust you." Kara said wiping her eyes.

"Anyway, there's still about fifteen minutes before your mother gets here," Conner said checking his cell for the time, "What are you going to do until she gets here?"

"I think I have an idea," Shayera said with a slight smile, "Hey Kara, have you tried to change the color of the constructs you make…like make it green like the Lanterns are?"

"No. Not yet," the young girl said looking at her friend, "Do you think I can?"

"I don't see why you wouldn't be able to." the Thanigarian said.

"I wouldn't try it." Bart said suddenly appearing next to Conner.

"Why not…..slowpoke?" Kara asked looking at the speedster.

"One word: migraine." he said looking at her.

"What's a migraine?" she asked.

"A really, really bad headache," Barbara said as everyone looked at the speedster, "How do you know that, Bart?"

"Let alone, wouldn't this be considered a spoiler?" Conner asked.

"Just a small one," Bart said lifting his right hand and having his index finger and thumb about an inch apart, "It's really not a good idea for her to try and start changing her constructs' colors yet."

"How bad of an idea is it?" Shayera asked. "

"Really bad," he said looking at the Thanigarian, "Her hitting Blue with a construct version of your mace bad."

"I see why he says that." Kara said holding a red ping pong ball for a few seconds before it disappeared.

"You ok, Kara?" Conner asked looking at the young girl. She slowly shook her head as she sat down on the floor.

"At least Artemis wasn't here to see this." Bart said before zipping off. He returned a few seconds later with a water bottle and a couple of Tylenol.

"Here, these will help," he said holding out the water bottle and Tylenol over.

Kara opened the water bottle and took a drink as Barbara asked, "Bart, what are those?"

"Children's Tylenol." he said.

"No." Kara said pushing the pills away.

"Trust me, Kara, these will help," he said as they heard the Zeta tubes kicked on.

"Recognized: Tigress; B-07."

"Uh-oh." Bart muttered as he saw the girl's mother walking towards them.

"Hey guys. Are ready to go sweetie?" Artemis asked.

"Ok." Kara said as she tried to get up.

"Kara, are you ok?" her mother asked as her daughter suddenly sat back down on the floor.

Kara shook her head as Shayera said, "You can blame me for this. I suggested that Kara try to create a construct of one single color and she got a headache from it."

"Had she taken anything for it?" Artemis asked as she knelt next to the young girl.

"I offered her some children's Tylenol but she said no." Bart said.

"That's because the Watchtower doesn't have children's Tylenol," she said as she gently brushed her daughter's hair back from her face, "Where does it hurt, sweetie?"

"All over." Kara whispered closing her eyes.

"In that case, let's get you home and to bed." Artemis said as she gently picked Kara up.

"Good idea." the young girl whispered as she laid her head on her mother's shoulder.

"I'm sorry Artemis….." Shayera said before the headed out.

"It's not your fault, it was just an idea…..and well she IS Wally's kid after all, always wanting to experiment."

Bart smiled as he knew more about Kara, but then Kara almost looked ready to create a regular construct to throw him across the room.

"I know what my daughter is thinking Bart, and be LUCKY I don't go after you first for offering her ADULT STRENGTH Tylenol." Artemis said without turning back and she carried Kara into the Zeta Tubes.

"Recognized Tigress B Zero Seven; Kara West A Two Nine."


	15. Chapter Fifteen: Sick

Chapter Fifteen

Sick...

At the request of her mother and never wanting to feel that much pain again, Kara agreed to never try to make single color constructs. But it wasn't long before Artemis found something else out about daughter. The day had started like any other; Artemis was in the kitchen cooking while Kara was brushing her teeth. Everything seemed fine until a loud pop came from the bathroom.

"Kara, are you ok?" Artemis called out looking towards the hallway.

"No." the young girl replied. Artemis turned the stove off before heading to the bathroom. She was just about to the door when Kara stepped into the hallway covered in what appeared to be toothpaste.

"What happened?" Artemis asked sounding surprised.

"I sneezed." the young girl said before coughing slightly.

Artemis placed a hand on her daughter's forehead and said, "And I do believe you are coming down with a cold."

"Does that mean I don't have to go to school?" Kara asked before they heard the phone ring.

"Go get cleaned up first then we'll talk, ok?" Artemis said before answering her cell phone, "Hello?"

"Hey Artemis, its Janet at the school," the school secretary replied, "Please tell me you haven't left home yet."

"Actually, I was about to call to let you know Kara and I won't be in today because she's down sick. Why?" Artemis asked as her daughter stepped back into the bathroom.

"A pipe burst last night and part of the school is flooded, so there is now class until further notice." Janet stated.

"Any idea how long the school will be closed?" Artemis asked.

"It shouldn't be more than a few days. Now you take care of your little girl alright." Janet replied.

"Will do, Janet and thanks," Artemis said before ending the call.

"Who was that, mom?" Kara asked stepping out of the bathroom.

"That was the school," Artemis said putting her phone away, "They were calling to let me know that a pipe burst over the weekend so they're closed till it's fixed."

"That's good," Kara said as she walked over and leaned against her mother.

"Kara why don't go lay down and I'll bring you some soup in a little bit?" Artemis asked looking down at her daughter.

"Ok mom." the young girl said before heading back to her room.

'Hopefully she's not like her father when she gets sick.' Artemis thought as she walked back to the kitchen.

As the day went on, Artemis was relieved to find that this was one trait Kara didn't share with her father. It wasn't until midafternoon that Kara walked into the living room with a blanket wrapped around her.

"Hey sweetie, are you feeling any better?" Artemis asked as her daughter climbed up on the couch next to her.

"A little," the young girl said as she laid her head on her mother's lap, "I am hungry though."

"I can make you some soup if you still want it," Artemis said before her phone went off. She grabbed her cell and was surprised to see who was calling. "Hey Jade, what's up?" she said answering the phone.

"Mom heard you have a sick Cottontail, so she's sending us over with some chicken noodle soup for her," her sister said over the phone.

"Please tell me you didn't cook it." Artemis said before putting fit on speaking.

"Funny Alice," Jade said not sounding amused, "Mom made it and we're climbing your stairs now."

"Thank you Aunt Jade." Kara said a little weakly.

"You're welcome, Cottontail." Jade said before they heard a knock on the door.

"The doors unlocked," Artemis said as the door opened to reveal the redheaded archer and Jade was right behind him.

"Heard there was a sick kid here," Roy said as he walked in carrying a covered bowl.

"Hi Uncle Roy, Aunt Jade," Kara said with a slight wave as she saw Jade put away her cell phone.

Roy walked over and placed the bowl on the table asking, "You feeling any better?"

"As long as I don't sneeze." she said slowly sitting up.

"What happens when she sneezes?" he asked looking at Artemis. "Things blow up; it's been a tube of toothpaste, two lightbulbs in her lamp…." Artemis said before getting up and heading to the kitchen.

"Oh that I would love to see," Jade said with a slight laugh.

"It's not funny." Kara said before coughing.

"Has she taken any cold medicine today, Artemis?" Roy asked.

"She's been asleep most of the day and as it stands I don't have any." Artemis said walking over.

"Guess it's a good thing I ran into Barry then." Roy said holding up a box of children's colds meds.

"I love my family," Kara said before she sneezed as the TV shattered, "Sorry."

"It's ok, sweetie," Artemis said putting the spoon next to the bowl, "You ok, Roy?"

"Y-yeah." the archer said looking at the broken TV before someone knocked on the door.

"Roy, can you get that please?" Artemis asked as she went to get a broom. He walked over and opened the door to find three members of the team standing there.

"Hi Barbara…Robin…Cassie," Kara whispered before leaning back against the couch.

"Hey Kara," Barbara said as the three entered the room, "You feeling any better?"

"No." the young girl said closing her eyes.

"She's not had a good day, guys." Roy said closing the door.

"I think I might know something can cheer her up," Robin said smiling a little, "I ran a comparison on the energy that thing Artemis saw against the energy from Bart's old visor and I found something out."

"And what might that be?" Artemis asked as she came back with a broom and dustpan then started to clean up the shattered TV parts.

"What you saw that night, Artemis, is made from chrysalis energy," he said looking at her, "The scans also picked up electrical impulses; the same kind of impulses given off by a speedster."

"Ok, so Barry or Bart created a chrysalis energy version of themselves. So?" she said trying not to get her hopes up.

"But that's the thing, the electrical impulses are giving off a very specific signature," he said walking over to her, "The same signature that Wally produced when he ran."

Artemis looked over at the young detective in disbelief as she asked, "You mean that thing really was Wally…I wasn't seeing things?"

"I believe it." Cassie said before pointing towards the hallway.

Everyone looked over to see the strange figure from that night standing next to the end of the couch.

"Kara, don't move." Barbara said quietly.

The figure seemed to say something as it started to walk towards Artemis. With each step it took, it seemed to twitch as if it was trying to keep itself together. It was just about to her, it suddenly went flying it a kitchen wall.

"Stay away from my mom." Kara said hovering in front of her mother via the construct wings.

"Oh that hurt." a familiar voice said as he slowly stood up.

"W-Wally?" Artemis said as a tear slowly slid down her cheek.

"Working on it," the speedster said as he turned to look at the others. A visible spark shot up his arm as if it was trying to keep him together. "I don't have a lot of time, so I need you all to listen," he said looking at them, "Who's the kid and what hit me?"

"Your daughter and it was a construct she can make with her meta power…" Artemis said wiping a tear from her eye, "I miss you, Wally."

"I miss you too, Artemis," he said before he reverted back to his 'ghost' look for a brief second then became Wally again, "I promise I will find a way back."

"I know, and I love you." she said.

"I love you too." he said before turning back into the energy mass then disappeared. Artemis wrapped her arms around her daughter from behind as the girl's wings vanished after she landed on her feet.

"Mom, was that dad?" Kara asked almost weakly.

Artemis slowly sat down on the ground as she held her daughter saying, "Yeah, that was Wally."

"We'll get him back, Artemis." Roy said as he pulled a trash can over in front of his niece.

"You better." the former archer said looking at him.

"Cassie, call Kaldur and let him know what just happened," Barbara said looking at the Amazon teen, "Robin, start checking for any residual energy from Wally."

"On it," Cassie said as the two did as they were told.

"I'll call Nightwing," Roy said pulling his phone out.

As the team members went to work, Barbara walked over to the young girl and asked, "Kara, what construct did you hit Wally with…..you were so quick I couldn't tell?"

"The mace I hit Blue with." Kara said leaning back against her mother.

"How about you eat your soup then head back to bed." Artemis said with a smile at not only the fact that Wally is still somehow alive, but also the fact that her daughter is very instinctive.

"Okay."

With Kara heading to the kitchen, Roy thought of a way to lighten the mood as Barbara and Artemis returned to cleaning up.

"Should I be concerned over the obvious DELIGHT my niece takes in the ultra-violence?"

Jade smiled and remembered that line from when they saved Speedy in Tibet. "It's genetic."

"Why do I get the feeling he's said that before?" Artemis asked.

"He has, that exact line, it's when we saved Speedy."

"Well, I'm sure Lian's driving mom crazy, so why don't you go get her."

"Yea, mom did say not to stay too long. Bye Cottontail."

"Bye Aunt Jade, Uncle Roy; say hi to my cousin for me." Kara said before another sneeze rang out and pieces of the blender started going all over the kitchen.

With that, Jade and Roy headed out and after cleaning up the TV, Artemis went to clean up the blender.


	16. Chapter Sixteen: Speed Force

Chapter Sixteen

Speed Force...

It took a little over a week to fix the water damage done to the school. While this was going on, Artemis decided to use that time as a small vacation for her and Kara. The first couple of days involved them staying home until the young girl was completely over her cold. During that time, she decided to tell Kara who exactly Wally was. With each story she told the young girl, Kara was more determined to help save him and meet him.

But something that bothered the two of them was something Bart had said. It was that one comment that led the two of them to Central City once Kara was over her cold. After making a phone call, Artemis and Kara found themselves sitting in a diner across a table from Barry.

"So I take it you two have been enjoying your week off?" he asked putting down his menu.

"Minus Kara's cold," Artemis answered as a waiter walked up.

After placing their orders, Barry waited until the waiter had walked away before asking, "I can understand the cold part. Both the twins are down sick right now. But I have a feeling that isn't why you two are here, is it?"

"What's the speed force?" Kara asked looking at him.

"That's a little tricky to explain." he replied looking at the young girl.

"Bart kind of told us the gist of it," Artemis said leaning back in her seat, "Yet Kara isn't a speedster and was able to tap into it that one day."

"Actually, she tapped into it the day she hit Jaime." he said as the waiter walked up with their drinks.

"I did?" Kara asked a little surprised. Barry waited till the waiter had left before saying, "Bat's checked the footage and found that the mace she used was giving off the same base speed force readings."

"But I'm not a speedster," Kara said shrinking in her seat. "

"True, but your father was," he said looking at the young girl, "And I have a feeling that's how you were able to do that."

"If that's true….." Artemis muttered. She looked at the speedster and said, "Barry, there's something you need to know."

"Roy told me about what happened this past Monday," he said looking at the blonde, "I asked one of the scientists at STAR Labs to look into it and he thinks he might know how to bring Wally back; but there's a problem."

"What kind of problem?" Kara asked.

"It's going to take a lot more power then you currently have, Pixie," he said sounding a little sad, "The scientist thinks the amount of speed force you can tap into is enough for Wally to come back for a few seconds. And it will completely drain Bart and I if we try to use our speed force."

"What do you mean drain?" Artemis asked.

"No more Flash or Kid Flash," he said looking directly at her, "Every bit of our speed would be gone. We would be as normal as you, Artemis."

"What about dad?" Kara asked sounding worried.

"He would be back, but we can't be sure if he would still have his speed." he said looking at the young girl.

"Is there any other way to get him back?" Artemis asked.

"Unfortunately no; there isn't," he said as the waiter walked up with their orders, "But enough about that; how's school been, Pixie?"

"It's not bad," Kara said as a plate was placed in front of her, "I like it better when mom teaches though."

"I heard about the gym teacher," he said with a slight laugh, "I'm still trying to figure out how you got Batman to agree to do Artemis's punishment."

"Did he actually do it?" Artemis asked.

"He changed the black parts of his suit to pink for that entire week," Barry said before showing the two a picture of the dark knight on his phone with said changes, "I just want to know how you got him to agree to do that."

"That's something myself and a few others would like to know." a man in a business suit sat next to the speedster.

"Kara, meet Clark Kent," Artemis said taking care of the introductions, "Clark, this is my daughter Kara."

"I hope you two don't mind, but I invited him to have lunch with us," Barry said smiling, "He also would like to know how that happened."

"Why?" Kara asked looking at the man.

"Largely because of a League and team wide pool that is currently going on," Clark said with a smile, "Anytime one is made, he wins ninety-nine percent of the time."

"And you're hoping this is that one percent he doesn't? Gotcha," Artemis said before looking at her daughter, "Well sweetie, go ahead and tell them how you did it."

"You really want to know?" Kara asked shyly.

"We wouldn't be asking if we didn't." Barry said looking at her.

The young girl slowly looked from Clark to Barry then her mother and back before saying, "I just did what Judy Hopps did."

"Judy Hopps?" Barry asked a little puzzled.

"From Zootopia." Artemis said with a smile.

"Oh."

Kara then looked at the speedster and said, "I kind of hustled him." Artemis tried not to snicker as the two League's stared at her daughter dumbfounded.

"You hustled the bat?" Clark asked as Barry placed a hand over his mouth.

"It wasn't that hard," she said with a shrug, "I just told him that mom couldn't help him unless he did her punishment for what happened with my gym teacher."

The speedster slowly rested his forehead on the table as his body started to shake with slight laughter.

"She actually hustled the bat?" Clark asked looking at the young girl's mother.

"Yes. Yes, she did." Artemis said nodding.

The three were silent for a few seconds before the busted out laughing.

"I cannot believe that you hustled him." Barry said between laughs.

"He asked for it." Kara said smiling a little.

"Diana is going to lose it when she hears this." Clark said pulling out his phone and dialed a number.

"Who is he calling?" Kara asked looking at her mother.

"You'll see." Artemis said as she reached up and gently patted her daughter's head.

"Hey Diana, its Clark." the man said putting the phone on speaker.

"Hello Clark. To what do I owe the pleasure?" the Amazon princess asked.

"I'm sitting here having lunch with Barry, Artemis, and her daughter, Kara," he said smiling, "And we just found out what Kara did to get our dark friend to change his look for a week."

"Oh this I have to hear." Diana said sounding a intrigued.

"She had him do her mother's punishment in order to get Artemis's help." Barry said as he started laughing again.

"She did what exactly?" she asked trying not to laugh.

"Well to put it simply…" Artemis said giving her daughter a slight nod.

"It's called a hustle, sweetheart," Kara said with a slight giggle. The line was silent for a few seconds before they heard Diana start laughing.

"Are you going to tell the others about this?" Kara asked looking across the table.

"You better believe it." Diana said before they heard a dull thud.

"Did she just drop the phone?" Barry asked.

"Yes, Barry, I dropped my phone." she said chuckling.

"Um, can I ask who won the bet?" Kara asked.

"I'll talk to Hal when I see him next." Diana said as she stopped laughing,

"I'll see you all on the Watchtower." Clark ended the call as Barry said, "I'll say this right now though, Artemis; what Kara did sounds like something Wally and Dick would've tried."

"Well, Wally is her father….it's genetic." the blonde said hugging her daughter.

"So what do you two have planned for the rest of the day?" Clark asked after putting his phone away.

"Well, Kara has a little bit of homework she needs to finish before school starts back up next week." Artemis said before they started eating.

"I finished that last night though." Kara said looking at her mother.

"All but the book report," her mother said tapping the girl on her nose, "You fell asleep trying to write it."

"Oops. Sorry mom." Kara said looking down at her plate.

"It's ok, sweetie," Artemis said before taking a drink, "Now finish your lunch so we can get going."

"Do we have too?" the young girl asked sounding sad.

"Only if you want to see grandma," Artemis said as Barry and Clark's phones started beeping.

"And duty calls." Barry said as the two checked their phones.

"I'll take care of the bill." Clark said taking out his wallet.

"It was nice meeting you….Superman." Kara said smiling after saying the last part very lowly.

"It was nice meeting you too, Kara, and I hope I can see your next hustle on bats. By the way, you have your mother's keen sense of observation." he said placing some money on the table before leaving.

"So not having seen Diana…who is she in the League?" Kara asked.

"Wonder Woman." Barry said with a smile. "Well, got to run."

With that Barry headed out as well while Artemis groaned.

"Why the groan, mom?"

"Because I can't stand it when Barry OR Bart using speed puns."

"Oh, next time I can throw Bart around in a construct if you want?"

"I'd like that, now let's go see your grandmother, then you can finish that book report."

With that the mother and daughter headed out for their next destination.


	17. Chapter Seventeen: Lightning

Chapter Seventeen

Lightning...

Of all the places Artemis never wanted to be, a hospitals ER waiting room was at the top of the list. She leaned back in her chair and slowly started going over everything that had happened that caused her to be there. The day itself had started out like any other. She and Kara had arrived to school like they always had, all the students were alert and participating, and there was a storm rolling in that wasn't supposed to hit until after they had gotten home. What the weather man hadn't counted on was a shift in the weather patterns causing the storm to hit hours earlier than predicted.

Her train of thought was interrupted by the sound of someone calling her name. She looked over to Roy wheeling her mother towards to her.

"We got here as soon as we could," Paula said taking her daughter's hands in hers, "Is Kara ok?"

"The doctors are looking at her now." Artemis said quietly as she focused on the floor.

"What happened?" Paula asked.

Artemis was silent for a few seconds before saying, "I-I took the class outside to do a science experiment from the text book. We were half way through it when the storm suddenly hit. I tried to get everyone inside, but one of the girls tripped. Kara helped her up and was about inside the building when she was hit by lightning."

Roy sat next to his sister in-law and placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "She'll be ok, Artemis. Don't worry."

"But what if she's not, Roy?" Artemis asked as the tears she had been holding back started to fall, "I can't lose her."

"You're not going to lose her." Paula said as the doctor walked up.

"Excuse me, Ms. Crock." he said after clearing his throat.

Artemis stood up and looked at him as she asked, "Is Kara ok?"

"She has some minor burns on her back from where she was struck but she is going to be fine considering…." he said calmly.

"W-w-what do you mean 'considering'?" she asked sounding worried, "What's wrong with my little girl?"

"I'm not sure if you knew about this, but your daughter is a meta-human." the doctor said.

"She can absorb light and manipulate it. I've known for a while." she replied.

"Well, she absorbed the lightning bolt and I think it may have been too much for her," he said calmly, "She needs to find a way to discharge it and soon."

"I know someone that might be able to help her," Roy said as he stood up, "Can we go see her?"

"Right now we are limiting visits to family only and two at a time; friends will be able to visit in the morning." he said looking at her.

"You two go ahead, I'll give Jade a call and let her know what is going on." Roy said looking at Artemis and her mother.

"Thanks Roy." Artemis said before her and Paula followed the doctor down the hall. He waited until the others had turned the corner before pulling his cell phone out and dialing a number.

"Pick up." he muttered as he waited for it to connect.

"Hey," he heard his wife say via the phone, "How is she?"

"From what the doctor said; she has some minor burns and absorbed the lightning. Artemis and your mom just went back to see her."

The line was silent for a few seconds before Jade asked, "How's Artemis holding up?"

"She's hanging in there, but she's worried," he said sitting down, "The doctor said Kara needs to discharge the built up light. I don't even know how she's going to do that."

"From what my sister has told me, Bart seems to know the most about Kara's powers." she said calmly.

"I'll give him a call and find out what he knows," he said before the speedster in question appeared in front of him, "Or not. I'll call you back."

He ended his call as Bart asked, "Hey, what's going on?"

"I need to know what happens when Kara hits her limit for absorbing light." Roy said putting his phone away.

"She goes blind," Bart said slowly as he realized where the two were standing, "What happened?"

"Kara got hit by lightning, and what do you mean she goes blind?" Roy asked as his temper flared.

"If she absorbs to much light, she starts to reject it." Bart stated as Paula wheeled up to the two.

"And what about the lightning bolt?" she asked.

"It may open up the connection she has with the speed force," Bart said looking at her, "How's Kara and Artemis?"

"Kara's asleep and stable right now," she said looking at the young speedster, "Artemis is pretty shaken up though."

"Kara will be ok," Roy said before they heard a loud crash, "The one that pisses Artemis off is another story."

"I got it," Bart said before running off. He stopped a short way down the hall after finding Artemis and entered the recovery rooms. He was quiet for a few seconds before whispering, "It is so weird to see her like this."

"What do you want, Bart?" Artemis asked quietly looking at him.

He walked over to her and said, "Just wanted to make sure you didn't kill any nurses."

"Not yet," she said looking at her daughter. They were silent for a few seconds before she asked, "Is she going to be ok?"

"She will be," he said looking at her, "Do you want me to go get you some stuff from your place?"

"Please." she said pulling a chair over and sitting next to her daughter.

"I'll be back soon." he said before zipping from the room.

"Take your time." she said wiping a tear from her eye. The sound of the heart monitor was the only noise in the room for a few minutes before she heard a knock on the door.

Artemis looked over to see one of the nurse enter saying, "Uh, excuse me. Are you her mother?"

"Yes, I am." Artemis said as she looked back towards the bed.

"We can bring a cot in if you want to stay the night." the nurse said before she started checking the machines.

"Thank you," Artemis said calmly watching the nurse, "What are you doing?"

"Just going to check to make sure she's breathing ok." the nurse said as she took out a stethoscope. A small static charge jumped from the medical device to the girl as it was about to be placed on her causing Kara to suddenly sit up screaming. Artemis bolted out of her chair and wrapped her arms around her daughter as she called her name.

"It's ok, sweetie. I'm here." Artemis said trying to calm the young girl down.

"Mommy, why can't I see you?" Kara cried as she hugged her mother.

"It's just temporary, Kara. I promise," Artemis said gently rocking the girl in her arms, "You're safe, Kara. I got you."

"Where am I?" Kara asked a little scared.

"You're in a hospital," her mother said leaning back to look at her daughter, "You were struck by lightning earlier."

"Is that why my back hurts?" Kara whimpered.

"It is," Artemis said moving her arms so they weren't touching the young girl's burns, "But don't worry, Kara; the nurses here will help you get better."

"Don't leave." Kara said burying her face into her mother's shoulder.

"I'm not going anywhere, sweetie." Artemis said wiping a tear from her eyes.

Once Kara had calmed down and the nurse finished checking to make sure the young girl was ok, Artemis gently brushed her daughter's hair back saying, "You had me scared there for a while."

"I'm sorry mom." Kara said as they heard a knock on the door.

"Mind if I come in?" Roy asked as he entered the room carrying a duffle bag.

"Uncle Roy?" Kara asked looking towards the source of the voice.

"Hey Cottontail," he said walking over to the bed, "You feeling ok?"

"No," she said slowly leaning back against the bed, "I can't get comfortable."

"I've been there," he said handing the bag over to Artemis, "Bart grabbed you a change of clothes, Artemis, and something he thought might help Kara get some sleep."

"He went into my room?" Kara asked turning her head towards her mother, "Why did that snail go in my room?"

Artemis opened the bag and smiled before saying, "To get your fox, sweetie."

"I'll hurt him later." the young girl said as a stuffed animal was placed on her lap.

"I'll let him know, Kara," Roy said smiling, "You just get some rest and get better, or your Aunt Jade will kick your butt. Okay?"

"Ok Uncle Roy," she said hugging the fox close, "Is Aunt Jade here?"

"No, but your Grandma Paula is," he replied, "I'm going to go let them know how you're doing."

"Bye, Uncle Roy." she said as he left the room.

After he left, Artemis was just glad that her little girl was alive, but then it dawned on her that she forgot to ask Bart about the light absorption but that could wait.

"Mommy, what did Uncle Roy mean by he's been there when I said I couldn't get comfortable?"

"That's a long story honey, but right now, you just rest."

"Okay…" Kara said as she tried to lie down, then quickly rolled to her side to avoid the pain from her burned back and now having her little fox with her and clutched tightly, Kara fell asleep.


	18. Chapter Eighteen: Card Tricks

Chapter Eighteen

Card Tricks...

It was almost a week before Kara was allowed to go home. While she had been happy to finally be out of that place, the young girl missed it slightly. It wasn't because she missed the food or the nurses, but because she was bored. The doctors had asked that Artemis keep her home for another week to make sure the young girl's burns were healing right. For the first couple of days, it had just been the two of them; but once Monday had arrived, Kara found herself with a different babysitter each day.

Granted it wasn't all bad for each person had found something that they could do together, there were still some things she wasn't able to do because of her injuries. To make matters worse, Dr. Fate had reluctantly agreed to cover for her Uncle Roy until Zatanna arrived. Personally she had no ill feelings towards the League member, but he just came off cold to her for some reason.

"I take it you've never been a babysitter before, have you?" Kara asked from her seat at the kitchen table.

"No." the League member said from his seat across from her.

"I can tell." she said as she felt her dog place his head on her lap.

"How come you are not in school?" he asked as she absently started to pet her dog.

"The doctor wants to make sure I'm ok plus….I can't see right now," she said sounding a little upset, "Everyone else that has watched me knew."

"I am not everyone else." he said looking at her.

"More like you don't care about anyone but yourself," she retorted, "No wonder mom and the original team hates you."

"Their opinions of me do not matter." he said.

"Everyone matters," she said trying to stay calm, "You're probably not even a real doctor are you?"

"One of my previous host bodies was." he said.

"I'm starting to think my father was right about you," she said looking towards her dog, "You're nothing but a fake. Why did you even agree to watch me?"

"Because I was asked to." he replied.

"Not by mom," she said leaning back slightly, "What are you to the Justice League anyway? Some bozo that wishes he was Batman?"

"I am the Sorcerer Supreme and a Lord of Order." he replied.

"More like a Lord of making people hate you." she said before slowly getting out of her chair.

"What are you doing?" he asked watching the young girl.

"Getting the deck of cards off the coffee table." she said holding her left hand out in front of her as she walked toward the living room.

"Why do you want those?" he asked.

"Because I would rather listen to cards being shuffled then some jerk that has the same mentality as my ex-foster parents." she said finding the couch.

Once she had the cards, she walked back to the kitchen table and sat down.

"Who were your foster parents?" he asked as she started to shuffle the cards.

"Doesn't matter." she said.

"I thought you said everyone matters." he said.

"They don't." she said as she started to shuffle the cards faster.

She continued on for a few more minutes before placing the deck on the table and tapping the top card before saying, "There's a card missing and I know exactly where it is."

"And where is that?" he asked before they heard the front door open.

"Hey Roy, sorry it took so long." a familiar voice said before the door closed.

"Roy left about half an hour ago, Zee," Kara said smiling as she looked to her right, "He was able to convince Dr. Heartless here to watch me until you got here."

"That's surprising." the magician said walking over.

"And now that Zatanna is here, I shall take me leave." he said standing up.

"Not until you give me back my card." Kara said looking towards the League member.

"What card?" Zatanna asked.

"Aunt Jade showed me a card trick and I was practicing before you got here." Kara replied calmly.

"Ok, so where is the card?" Zatanna asked.

"Fate has it." the young girl replied.

"I do not have your card." he said looking at her.

"Yes you do, because I know exactly where it is." Kara said.

"Then where is it?" he asked.

"In your helmet." the young girl replied.

"It is not in my helmet." he said turning to leave.

"Why are you running, Fate? Afraid I'm right?" she asked as she started to smile, "Tell you what, let's make a little bet. If I'm right about the card being there, you have to take the helmet off and leave it off until the world needs Fate, then you have to remove it again after Fate is needed."

"If you're wrong, then you apologize to me immediately." he said looking at her.

"Deal," Kara said as her smile widened. The room went silent as Fate reached up and lifted his helmet slightly only to stop as a card slid out from under it.

"Called it," Kara said after hearing the card hit the floor, "Helmet off."

He looked at her for a minute before slowly taking his helmet completely off. A bright light started to fill the room but disappeared quickly as Fate changed to Zatanna's father.

"D-d-dad, is that you?" Zatanna asked as tears filled her eyes.

The elder magician nodded as he put the helmet on the table saying, "Thanks to our young friend. You've gotten as beautiful as you mother."

She walked over and hugged her father as they heard a soft whimper.

"Really shouldn't have done that." Kara said slowly putting her head on the table.

"Kara, what's wrong?" Zatanna asked checking on the young girl.

"Too much light." the young girl replied quietly.

"Is there anything we can do to help?" Zatara asked.

"Stop the world from spinning." the young girl replied quietly.

"I think I might know something that could help." he said after a few seconds thought. He put his hands together and slowly brought them apart to reveal a small clear crystal.

"Dad, what is that?" Zatanna asked.

"Something that should help," he said gently touching the crystal to the young girl's hand. The crystal started to glow brightly before turning bright white.

"Does that help any, Kara?" he asked taking the crystal away.

"A lot actually," she said slowly sitting up, "What did you do?"

"I used a Zekron crystal to drain some of the light you've absorbed." the elder magician said.

"How much of her power did it absorb?" Zatanna asked looking at her father.

"Quite a bit actually," he said holding the gem up and examining it, "There is enough power in here to run Las Vegas for at least two days."

"That much power was in me?" Kara asked looking at the gem, "It doesn't look that big."

Zatanna looked at her little friend for a few seconds before asking, "Can you see that?"

"Not really," the young girl said looking at her friend, "I can see the outline of it but that's about it."

"And what was your vision like before I did that?" he asked.

"I really couldn't see anything." Kara answered.

"Do you think we could use another one to syphon more of Kara's built-up power off?" Zatanna asked looking at her father.

"Without knowing how much power she still has, we could risk putting her life in danger." he said.

"I think I might know how much power I have," Kara said before they heard a stomach growl, "That wasn't me."

"No, that was me," Zatanna said with a slight laugh, "I came straight here when I heard that Roy got called in for a mission."

"There's some leftover spaghetti from last night in the fridge if you want it….but that's about it," Kara said motioning towards the kitchen, "Mom was going to stop and get some groceries after work."

"Do you think Artemis would mind if Zatanna did the grocery shopping today?" Zatara asked as he sat in a chair.

"You would have to call my mom and ask. Why?" Kara replied.

"Because I am taking everyone out to dinner tonight," he replied looking at the young girl, "My treat."

"Why?" she asked.

"It's my way of saying thank you for freeing me." he said.

"You really don't have to do that," she said sinking in her seat a little bit, "I was just trying to help Zee see her father again."

"And that you did," Zatanna said wiping a tear away, "Kara, I'd like you to formally meet my father, Giovanni Zatara."

"Hello." the young girl said shyly.

"It's nice to meet you, Kara," he said smiling, "And thank you for freeing me."

"Like I said, I was helping Zee." Kara said as she smiled back at the man.

"I now wonder what that card trick was you were practicing…." Giovanni remarked.

"Just something Aunt Jade taught me."

"And I understand she can be quite mischievous."

"Yep."

"Let me go call your mother about Zatanna getting groceries, then we can talk, and I shall tell you a few stories about my time with the League before my deal with Dr. Fate."

"Zee told me some about that, but I'd love to know more." Kara said and with that Giovanni went to call Artemis.


	19. Chapter Nineteen: Restored

Chapter Nineteen

Restored...

The return of the lost magician was made public in grand fashion a few days later when Zatara suddenly arrived to help out the Flash in Central City. Flash watched in disbelief as his fellow leaguer took down the criminals with barely a flick of his wrist. The biggest surprise came when the magician told the rest of the League of how he was freed from Fate's helmet. It was because of this that led to both Artemis and Kara being asked to come to the Watchtower following school Monday. Unfortunately for the young girl, that was still a few hours away.

For the first time since her accident, Kara accompanied her mother to class that day. While it felt great to be back in class with her friends, there was now a new problem. Largely due to what happened, Kara couldn't help but feel bored out of her mind. Regardless of the class, she really couldn't participate because of her eyesight. Even in something like gym, all the young girl could do was sit against the wall and listen.

'Wish I could see what is going on,' she thought with a slight sigh. She pulled her knees to her chest and froze what sounded like a low rumble came from outside.

"Mom." she whispered as she started to shake.

"Ok everyone, five minutes till lunch," she heard her mother say walking towards her, "Go ahead and start putting everything away." Artemis knelt next to her daughter and gently placed a hand on her shoulder as she softly asked, "I'm here sweetie, what's wrong?"

Kara whimpered as that rumble got louder.

"It can't get you, Kara." Artemis said giving the young girl a hug.

"Make it stop." Kara whispered closing her eyes.

"It'll be over soon, don't worry." her mother said trying to comfort her.

Artemis looked over at the rest of her class before a loud pop was heard as the lights went out.

"Great," she muttered as the rest of her class let out a startled scream. "Everyone, calm down!" she yelled looking towards the others, "Do not move or panic. The emergency lights should kick on in a few seconds."

"Ms. Crock, the emergency lights were being switched out with newer ones, remember?" one of the female students asked.

"And this day keeps getting better." Artemis said.

"Mom, what's going on?" Kara asked nervously.

"It's just a power outage, sweetie," Artemis said looking at her daughter, "Everything's going to be ok."

"Ms. Crock," one of the students called out, "not trying to sound mean, but is this what it's like to be blind?"

"Basically," Artemis replied looking in the direction the voice came, "Kind of makes you glad you can turn on a light doesn't?"

The students voice their agreement before a beam of light like from a flashlight cut through the darkness.

"Or those that can absorb it and use it later," Kara whispered as the light got slightly brighter.

"I am so glad you brought a flashlight, Kara," Artemis said before looking at her students, "Everyone line up at the door and place a hand on the shoulder of the person in front of you." The students quickly lined up at one of the doors as Artemis carefully stood up with her daughter in her arms.

"You are amazing." she whispered to her daughter as she walked over to her class.

"Is Kara ok?" one of the students asked as the two walked over.

"She's a little spooked because of the thunder, but she'll be fine," Artemis said with a slight nod, "Jenny, go ahead and lead everyone back to class."

The young girl started to push the door open and let out a startled yelp as the door was pulled open by the principal.

"Is everyone ok?" Mr. Blackthorn asked holding the door open.

"Considering," Artemis replied, "What's going on?"

"Power's out in over half the city," the principal started, "The office is trying to get a hold of everyone's parents because we have to send the students home early."

"I like that idea," Kara said before she flinched as she heard rumbling from outside.

"Ms. Crock, why don't you go ahead and take Kara home?" the principal suggested, "I'll make sure your class gets to where they need to be."

"I'll take her home after I make sure my class is ok," Artemis said before looking at her students, "Lead the way, Jenny."

The young girl gave a slight nod before leading the rest of her class back to their classroom. As the students got their things together, Artemis sat Kara down at her desk before going to pack her stuff up.

"Do we have any homework, Ms. Crock?" one of the students asked.

"Not today, Ben." Artemis replied before they heard a knock on the door.

All eyes looked over to see the school's secretary open the door.

"Hey Janet," Artemis with a slight smile, "Let me guess; the buses are here."

"You got it." Janet said with a nod.

"Ok everyone, hopefully I will see you all tomorrow and stay safe." Artemis said turning her attention to her class. After her class said their goodbyes and left; Artemis walked over and hugged her daughter.

"You ok?" she asked after a few seconds.

"So long as there's no thunder," Kara said relaxing into her mother's embrace.

"Smart thinking about creating that flashlight, sweetie," Artemis said stepping back to look at her daughter.

"Thanks mom," Kara said with a slight smile, "Can we go home?"

Artemis brushed her daughter's hair back before saying, "As soon as I finish getting your stuff."

"Ok." Kara said as she rubbed her eyes.

"Is something wrong with your eyes?" Artemis a little worried.

The young girl blinked a few times before looking at her mother and saying, "I-I can see you."

"You what?" Artemis asked not sure if she heard her daughter right.

"I can see you," Kara repeated as she started to cry, "I can see."

Artemis hugged her daughter tight as tears welled up in her eyes. "You must have used up enough of what was left that you had absorbed from the lightning." she said smiling.

Kara nodded as she buried her face into her mother's shoulder. They stayed like that for a few moments before said, "Come on sweetie let's go home."

"Ok, mom," Kara said before letting her mother go, "Can we order pizza tonight?"

"If we have power," Artemis said before grabbing her bag. After making sure they had everything, the two left the school and went home. Along the way, Artemis noticed that Kara kept making small constructs.

"What are you doing?" she asked as they pulled into the drive of their home.

"Trying not to think about the lightning," Kara said unbuckling her seatbelt.

"Kara, listen to me," Artemis said placing a hand on the young girl's shoulder, "You're not going to get hit by lightning again. I promise."

"I hope so." Kara said before flinching at the sound of a low rumble. The two quickly went inside and smiled as they heard the rain start coming down hard right before the front door completely closed.

"Guess we got home in time." Kara said before taking her coat off and putting it up.

"And we still have power for now," Artemis said turning a lamp on.

"Was dad afraid of lightning?" Kara asked looking at her mother.

"In a way," Artemis said hanging her jacket up, "It was a lightning bolt that made him a speedster. Just like Barry and Jay."

"You don't think I'll become one, do you?" Kara asked.

"I'm not sure," Artemis said looking at her daughter, "But if you do, maybe you'll be faster than your dad. It always annoyed him that he wasn't as fast as Barry. Now, how about I show you what your dad and I use to do when it came to storms like this?"

"What was that?" Kara asked.

"Basically, build a pillow fort and watch movies until the storm passed." Artemis said smiling.

"Like the one Uncle Roy and I built the last time he watched me?" the young girl asked as she started to glow.

"Only if you tell me why Jade banned you two from building them and please kill the glow," Artemis said bring a hand up to shield her eyes.

"Sorry," Kara said as the glow subsided, "We built one then ambushed Aunt Jade with crumpled up newspaper."

"Dick was involved, wasn't he?" Artemis asked with an amused smirk.

"I can neither confirm nor deny that statement." Kara said as she nodded.

"Oh he was there alright." Artemis said as she knew that nod AND smile.

"Whatever you want to believe, mom; right now, I'm going to go read."

"You've missed it haven't you?"

"You bet."

Artemis then grabbed the phone to call the pizza place.


	20. Chapter Twenty: Training In Magic

Chapter Twenty

Training In Magic...

It took about a day to restore power to Palo Alto after the storm had passed. Outside of the downed power lines, the only real damage done was that to a statue in front of city hall, but that didn't matter seeing as Kara was happy to have her vision back. For the remainder of the night, the young girl and her mother stayed home. As the next day arrived, they weren't surprised that there was no school till the following day. While it gave the two a little more time together, Kara smiled as she had an idea about how to let her mother's friends know that her sight was back.

The young girl arrived for her training session on the Watchtower with one of the Lanterns wearing a pair of black wraparound sunglasses and was led over to where she worked with them with Virgil's help. Like most days, both Lanterns were off world at the moment; which actually helped with her plan.

"They really should let you and Artemis know if they're not going to be here." Virgil stated.

"I agree." Kara said as she sat cross-legged on the floor. She placed her hands on her knees and let out a slow breath.

"So what are you going to do until your mom gets here?" he asked watching her.

"Meditate for a little bit at least," she said calmly, "May harass Bart later if he's here."

"He's in Central City helping Flash at the moment," Virgil said sitting next to her, "I know Jaime's here though."

"Keep him away from me." she said closing her eyes.

"Still haven't forgiven him yet, huh?" he asked.

"I wouldn't if I were her." a voice said from behind them.

"Hi Karen," Kara said smiling a little.

"Hey girl," the teen said sitting on the young girls other side, "How are you holding up?"

"Not bad," Kara said looking at her one friend out of the corner of her eye, "I've been kind of bored not being able to do anything in class."

"You'll get your sight back, don't worry." Karen said giving the young girl a one armed hug.

"I know," Kara said as her smile widened slightly, "Not a fan of those books on CD."

"Is anyone a fan of those?" Virgil asked trying to lighten the mood a little.

"Anyway," Karen said dismissing the topic, "So which Lantern are you training with today?"

"It was supposed to be Hal," the young girl said as her body relaxed, "But a friend said he would work with me if both Lanterns were busy."

"You're going to work with Roy?" Karen asked.

"I never said it was Roy." Kara said as they heard the Zeta tubes kick on.

"Recognized: Zatara, One One."

Both team members looked over to see the elder magician walking towards them.

"No way," Karen said quietly with wide eyes.

"Hi Giovanni," Kara said watching her friend reaction out of the corner of her eye.

"Hello Kara, are you ready to get started?" the magician asked.

"Yup." the young girl said standing up.

"Who's that?" Virgil asked.

"He's Zatanna's father." she said before walking to the center of the training area.

Karen leaned over towards her fellow team member and quietly said, "I'm going to go get Kaldur."

"Right." he said before the girl shrank down and flew off. She returned a few minutes later being followed by Kaldur and Diana.

She reverted back to her normal size as Kaldur asked, "So what is the big emergency?"

"Kara says that's Zee's dad," Karen said motioning towards where the young girl was training. They looked over to see Kara creating a construct dragon under the magician's supervision.

"By the gods," Diana said as she watched the two, "Giovanni?"

The magician looked over and smiled before turning his attention back to the young girl and said, "You're doing great Kara. Are you ready for the next part?" Kara's eyes started to glow white as the dragon looked over towards the others.

"This can't be good." Virgil muttered as they watched it walked over to them.

The dragon stopped a few feet from them and seemed to sigh before standing up on its back legs to reveal it was wearing a dragon sized version of Wonder Woman's outfit and asked in an almost feminine voice, "Seriously though, does this make my butt look big?"

The room was silent for a few seconds before Diana started to snicker then she busted out laughing.

"I'll take that as a yes." the dragon said before disappearing.

"That was so wrong, but." Diana said between laughs.

"Glad you liked it." Kara whispered as she slowly sat on the ground.

Kaldur quickly walked over and knelt next to the young girl asking,

"Kara, are you ok?"

"I'm ok, just a little dizzy," she said looking at her friend, "I think I used a little too much energy doing that."

"Then let's take a break." Zatara said as he walked over and handed the girl a water bottle.

"Thank you." Kara said before taking a long drink.

"That was some trick Kara; the Muse Thalia would be pleased." Diana said as her and the others walk over.

"First time doing that; and Thalia….." the young girl said before taking another drink.

"There are many Muses in my culture and Thalia is the muse of comedy. Not sure which was more surprising though," Diana said looking at the magician, "The dragon joke or finding out that you're back, Zatara."

"And you can thank Kara on both counts," he said looking at the amazon, "She figured out how to free me and came up with the dragon idea."

"I'm starting to think that there's nothing she can't do." Karen said sitting next to her friend.

"Well she did hustle Batman." Virgil said.

Diana tried not to laugh as Kaldur said, "I heard about that."

"And I think we might want to call Artemis," Karen said as the young girl gave her head a quick shake as if she was trying to stay awake, "You sure you're ok, Kara?"

"Cold chill." the young girl said.

"Anyway," Zatara said turning his attention to the Amazon princess, "I thought everyone had heard about me being freed from Nabu."

"I was dealing with a situation at home when everyone else found out." Diana said looking at her friend.

"Are you two dating?" Kara suddenly asked the two League members.

Both of them looked at the young girl surprised as Zatara said, "No, we're just old friends. Why do you ask?"

"Because I think Grandma Paula would be a better match then someone that can punch out Superman." she said slowly standing up.

"We're not dating, Kara," Diana said with a slight laugh, "And while I think you might be right about Zatara and your grandmother, didn't your mother say something about matchmaking?"

"She threatened to cut Mal's thing off if Karen tried to set her up on another date," the young girl stated.

"But you're allowed?" Diana asked.

"As long as I don't set her up," Kara said smiling.

"Or I catch you setting anyone else up," they heard the girl's mother say from behind her. Kara turned around to see Artemis on one of the holo-screens looking directly at her.

"Hi mom," the young girl said with a weak laugh.

"Hi Kara, how's the training?" Artemis asked with a slight smile.

"Better now that I can see again," the young girl said as Diana walked up behind her.

"She at least gave me a good laugh," the Amazon said smiling.

"Did it involve a dragon, someone's outfit, and the thing's butt?" Artemis asked with a sigh, "Because she's not supposed to do that if she did."

"And why is that?" Diana asked looking down at the young girl.

"I get light headed when I try to make them talk," Kara replied sheepishly.

"And what did you have it say?" Artemis asked focusing on her daughter.

"If it's butt looked big in Wonder Woman's outfit," the young girl said slowly looking up at her mother, "I'm in trouble, aren't I?"

"Yes, but considering everything that has happened to you over the past month, I'm not going to punish you for it," Artemis said smiling, "But that does mean you have to go to bed like it was a school night for this weekend."

"Ok mom," Kara said smiling a little.

"Time out," Virgil said walking over, "When did Kara get her sight back?"

"During yesterday's storm," Artemis stated looking at him, "Power went out at the school during gym class and she created a flashlight."

"Good call on the flashlight," Diana said placing a hand on the young girl's shoulder.

"Thank you," Kara said as her smile widened slightly.

"Well, I got held up, so I wanted to let you know why I was late."

"Thanks, mom."

"I will help our little light magician with her powers some as the Lanterns are off world right now." Giovanni said as he stepped up beside Kara.

"Thank you, Zatara, and I hope your reappearance went well."

"It did, well you better get back to whatever you were doing then."

With that the call ended and everyone went back to watching Giovanni help Kara with her powers.


	21. Chapter Twenty-One: Two Kid Flash's?

Chapter Twenty-One

Two Kid Flash's...?

Things started to return to normal for the small family. Kara was getting better at controlling her powers and her grades were improving greatly. Whereas Artemis had become one of the favorite teachers in her school, largely because of how she handled her class. From the growing consensus, she was the only teacher that actually seemed to care about her students. But even as Spring Break drew closer, Kara started to notice something at home.

Over the past few weeks, a strange blue mass seemed to be manifesting briefly outside Artemis' room each night. It never stayed long, but it looked as if it was watching her. Worried about how her mother would react, Kara told both Barbara and Robin about what had been going on. Afraid something bad might happen, the three of them quickly came up with a plan. Barbara would place a couple of different sensors in her friend's place while they were at school and have Robin waiting outside if needed.

Unfortunately, that was the only part of the plan that had gone right. For around one in the morning, Kara had gotten up to run to the bathroom. She stepped into the hall and turned to her right and was suddenly thrown down the hall with enough force to leave a dent in the one wall before falling to the ground unconscious. When she came to, she found herself being cradled in her mother's arms as the blondes tear fell onto her face.

"Mom?" the young girl whispered as her eyes fluttered open.

Artemis gasped and held her daughter tighter as she said, "Thank god you're awake."

"You ok, little one?" a strange voice said.

"No." Kara whimpered slightly.

"There's an ambulance on the way and Barbara was able to recover the footage of what happened." Robin said walking up.

"What happened?" Artemis asked looking at the teen.

"That energy mass you dealt with before appeared in your hall and Kara walked into heading to the bathroom," he replied kneeling next to his former teammate, "As soon as the two came in contact, it released an isolated EMP burst that took out the camera and anything electronic here."

"And that ambulance is taking too long," a male voice said, "I can get her to the hospital faster."

"No hospital." Kara said trying to sit up.

"Kara, please don't move," Artemis said trying not to panic, "You got thrown into a wall and may have a concussion."

"My head hurts and my right hand feels like its burning." the young girl said before feeling a gust of wind.

"What happened?" Bart asked walking over.

"Kara's been h-urt," Artemis said looking up to see the speedster kneeling next to himself, "Bart?"

"In the flesh and gear." the speedster said as they heard the sound of a siren approaching. "I got it." he said before speeding off.

"If that was Bart, then who are you?" Artemis asked looking at the second Kid Flash. He looked up at the blonde as Bart returned with the EMTs following close behind. After determining that Kara had received a minor concussion along with a slight burn on her hand and making sure the girl was ok, Artemis waited until they had left before asking, "Would someone please tell me what is going on?"

"Kara noticed that the blue energy mass that she hit with her mace had been appearing in your doorway over the past couple of weeks at night," Robin said looking at her, "After talking to me and Barbara, the three of us decided to try and catch it."

"So you sat outside my place waiting for that thing to show up?" she asked, getting mad.

"Barbara had me install some energy sensors while you two were in school a few days ago," Bart said calmly, "Once they were triggered, Robin and I got here as fast as we could."

"Ok; but that doesn't explain why there is a second Kid Flash in my home." she said pointing at the other person dressed as the speedster. All eyes looked over at the mystery speedster that was sitting on the couch petting Brucely and the protective dog was allowing it.

"Who are you?" Robin asked reaching for his utility belt.

"Someone that is trying to figure out what is going on as much as you are." the mystery man said as he reached up and pushed his mask off. Artemis gasped as her eyes went wide.

"W-W-Wally?" she asked as tears filled her eyes.

"In the flesh babe." he said looking at her smiling.

She slowly sank down to her knees as Bart asked, "How?"

"I think I might know, but I'm not completely sure," Wally said looking at his cousin once removed, "I was able to pull myself together from time to time using the speed force, but never to the point like I did the one night. There was never enough of a charge to completely bring me back until I ran into that little girl tonight. I'm sorry she got hurt."

"I forgive you," they heard a voice say softly. They looked over to see Kara leaning against the end of the couch.

"Kara, what are you doing up?" Artemis asked quickly getting to her feet and going over to her daughter.

"My head hurts," the young girl replied letting her mother pick her up.

"I know, sweetie," Artemis said holding her daughter close, "Do you want some Tylenol?"

"Please," Kara said resting her head on her mother's shoulder.

Bart zipped out of the room for a brief second and reappeared standing next to the former archer holding a glass of water and a couple of pills saying, "I checked to make sure I grabbed the right ones."

"Thanks slowpoke," Kara whispered before downing the pills.

Artemis looked towards the couch to see her boyfriend watching the young girl. "Wally," she said turning so he could see the girl better, "I'd like you to meet Kara, our….daughter."

The speedster sat there stunned for a few seconds before asking, "H-how long was I gone?"

"Three years too many," she said as she started to cry again.

Wally got to his feet and pulled his newfound family into his arms before whispering, "And I will never leave you two again. I promise."

They stood there for a few seconds before they heard a cell phone. Wally picked it up off the table and smiled before saying, "It's Barbara."

"Looks like the pulse is wearing off," Robin said bring up a holo-screen via his wrist comp.

Artemis took the phone and hit the answer key before saying, "Hello."

"Is everyone ok?" Barbara asked sounding worried.

"Everyone's fine, Babs," Artemis replied sniffling, "Kara has a minor concussion and a slight burn on her right hand, but she'll be ok."

"And that energy mass?" Barbara asked.

"I think I can explain that," Robin said walking over.

Artemis kicked the call to speaker before saying, "Go ahead, Robin."

"Ever since Kara was struck by lightning, she had been giving off a high energy signature," the young detective explained, "The strange part about that is the energy she was giving off was the exact opposite of the energy mass that showed up here tonight. When she came in contact with it, the two cancelled each other out with a surprising side effect."

"What side effect besides Kara getting hurt?" Barbara asked.

"I think he means me, Babs," Wally said with a slight smile.

The line was quiet for a moment before Barbara asked, "Wally, is that you?"

"Believe it or not," he replied.

"According to my readings; he's like he was before we lost him," Robin said, checking his wrist comp.

"Hey Barbara, could wait until tomorrow to tell the League I'm back?" Wally asked.

"I would, but Flash and Red Arrow are already on their way there to make sure you guys are ok," she replied.

"Does that mean I can't go back to bed yet?" Kara asked quietly.

"Depends on how long before they get here," Artemis said before the Scarlet Speedster appeared in the room. "Is everyone alright?" Barry asked.

"We're fine, Uncle Barry," Wally said looking at his former mentor, "And before you ask, let's take this conversation outside so Kara can get some sleep." The four males stepped outside as Artemis took her daughter back to her room.

"Who was the guy that hugged us, mom?" Kara asked sleepily.

"I'll explain after you get some sleep; ok, sweetie?" Artemis said gently laying her daughter in her bed.

"Ok mom," Kara said before nodding off. Artemis watched her daughter sleep for a few seconds before heading back into the living room to find Wally standing there.

"Uncle Barry said he would stop back in tomorrow to see how Kara's doing," he said smiling. Tears started to fill her eyes as she walked over to him.

"Artemis, I'm so-" Wally started to say before she slapped him across his face.

"That was for dying on me," she said as her tears fell freely.

"Sorry beautiful," he said as he gently pulled her into his arms.

"You did it to help your uncle and cousin, I get THAT, but….."

Without any warning, Wally shut the sarcastic and temperamental archer up with a kiss.


	22. Chapter Twenty-Two: The Coma

Chapter Twenty-Two

The Coma...

True to his word, Barry stopped in the next day to see how Kara was. While he was glad that the young girl was ok, he was more surprised to hear about how his former protégé was brought back. One thing that the speedster did agree with was that Artemis stay home with her daughter after what all had happened the night before. He stayed for at least an hour before having to head off to work. Even before he had left, he had started to talk with Wally about everything that had happened while he was gone.

Artemis took over once Barry left and would stop from time to time to make sure Kara was ok. As it got closer to dinner time, she found herself talking about the dream she had via the coma. Wally never said a word as he listened.

It wasn't until she was finished before he finally said, "I'm sorry I wasn't here for you."

She wiped a tear from her eye and gave a slight laugh before saying, "I know, Wally, but you're here now."

He smiled as he took her hand in his and said, "So tell me more about this dream version of Kara."

"No offense, but I prefer the one we have." she said smiling.

"Why?" the heard a voice ask. They looked towards the one end of the couch to find Kara standing there on the verge of tears.

"She could do so much more than I can," the young girl said holding her fox tight, "Wouldn't you rather have her than me?"

"Kara, come here," Artemis said motioning her daughter to sit with her. The young girl walked over and sat between her parents.

"To answer your question Kara; no, I wouldn't," Artemis said gently wrapping an arm around the girls shoulders, "Because one thing I have learned is that it's the imperfections that make life worth living. The dream Kara was too perfect. It was like she knew everything before I could teach her. While we haven't been together long, I cherish every second I have with you like it's my last. I love you, Kara and only you."

"I love you too, mom." Kara said giving her mother a hug.

Wally waited a few seconds before asking quietly, "So this is Kara?"

Kara looked at the man and smiled shyly asking, "Are you a friend of my mom's?"

"Actually sweetie, this is Wally," Artemis said smiling a nervously, "Your father."

The young girl's eyes went wide for a few seconds before asking, "Are you really my dad?"

He nodded slowly as he watched the young girl saying, "Yeah I am, and I'm sorry for not being here."

"You're here now," she said before leaning over and punched him in the leg, "….. an that's for making my mom cry."

"Ow. I'm sorry." he said.

"You better be." she said leaning back against the couch.

"Oh I like her." he said looking at his girlfriend after a few seconds.

"You should see what she does to Bart." Artemis said with a smile while gently brushing her daughter's hair back from her face, "She's also wanted to meet you since I first started to tell her about you."

"And I've been wanting to meet her since I was told I have a daughter," he said shifting his gaze to the young girl.

"Y-you have?" Kara asked shyly looking up at him.

"Well yeah. Why wouldn't I?" he asked smiling.

"I hit you with a mace the last time we meet." she replied.

"True, but you got thrown into a wall bringing me back." he said apologetically.

"It's ok," she said smiling at him.

"No fighting you two," Artemis said as they heard a knock on the front door.

Before anyone could get up, the door slowly opened as they heard a voice say, "Sorry to swing by unannounced, Artemis, but Barry asked me to come check on you guys."

"She's got a minor concussion and a burn on her hand, but she's fine otherwise," Wally said as they looked over, "And aren't you supposed to be in school, Bart?"

"Blame her," the younger speedster said as he entered followed by a redheaded woman.

"Hey Babs, what's up?" Wally asked smiling.

"Dick has been cheating on me and doesn't know that I know," she said smiling, "What about you?"

"Not bad," he replied with a shrug, "Little upset that I hurt my daughter coming back."

"I've been hurt worse." Kara said leaning against her mother.

"She's been struck by lightning, burned, punc-." Bart started to ramble out.

"Another word out of you and I'll let Jade kill you," Artemis said glaring at the speedster, "And you know how much fun she has toying with her prey."

"Shutting up now, boss," Bart said.

"What was that, snail?" Kara asked looking at him.

"Sorry." he said quietly before sitting in a chair quietly.

"My god, you are just like your mother." Wally said looking at Kara.

"And she hustled Batman the way you and a certain bird used to hustle each other from time to time," Artemis stated.

A surprised looked appeared on his face before he asked, "You actually hustled the bat?"

"Yeah," Kara said a little nervous.

"That's my girl," he said proudly, "Speaking of Dick…."

"Do NOT say that man's name." Barbara growled as she sat in a chair.

"What did he do to make you mad and how are we going to troll him to get even?" he asked looking at her.

"Drop the subject, Wally," she said glaring at him, "I think the better question is do you still have your speed."

"I'll find out when we head to the Watchtower later," he said with a shrug, "Uncle Barry is going to have my ID reactivated once he gets off work. Until then, I get to know my daughter."

"You're not going to become a hero, are you?" Kara asked.

"My days of being a hero are over," he said turning his attention to the young girl, "And besides, my old gear looks better on Bart than it did on me. But what about you, are your powers ok?"

"I don't want you to try until you get checked out by a doctor." Artemis said.

"Ok mom," Kara said before the heard someone's stomach growl.

"And the bottomless pit is back." Artemis said with a slight laugh.

"That wasn't me." Wally said holding his hands up.

"Sorry," Kara said blushing.

"How about I do a food run for everyone?" Bart asked standing up.

"No, you're doing a grocery run for me," Artemis said looking over at him, "List is on the fridge. Get only what is on it and nothing else, unless you're buying it."

"Got it," the younger speedster said before walking to the fridge and taking the list.

"Don't take too long Bart, or I will sick my kid on you," Wally said with a laugh.

"Please, she wouldn't hurt me." the speedster said as he walked to the front door.

"Hey Bart," Kara said as he placed his hand on the doorknob, "My former foster dad showed me seventeen different ways to kill a speedster and make it look like they sneezed. Not only that, but remember the catapult….."

He swallowed hard before stepping outside saying, "I'll be back in twenty."

"Please tell me you were bluffing." Wally said before looking down at his daughter. The young girl slowly shook her head as she pulled her knees to her chest.

"At least we know way she doesn't like hurting people," Artemis said gently hugging her daughter.

"Who was her foster parent?" he asked sounding a little upset.

"You're not going to be able to touch the guy, Wally," Barbara said looking over at him, "Kara's foster dad was taken out a few months ago at Belle Reve Prison."

"That doesn't mean I can't thank the guy that did that." he said looking over at the redhead.

"Are you serious, Wally?" Artemis asked looking at him, "You're going to hunt down Ra's Al Gul and thank him for killing Kara's former foster dad, my father?"

"Ra's didn't kill him," Barbara interjected, "No one did actually. According to the security cameras, a black mass engulfed Sportsmaster for a few seconds before disappearing. When the guards found him the next morning, it was like someone erased his mind completely. Not even J'onn can figure out what happened."

"I think I know what happened." Kara said before Bart walked carrying a couple of grocery bags.


	23. Chapter Twenty-Three: Nevermore

Chapter Twenty-Three

Nevermore...

After seeing a doctor, Kara was allowed to go back to school after a few days' rest. While she was glad to be back in school, something that surprised her was that Wally was taking her out for ice cream after school.

"You sure this is a good idea?" Kara asked a little worried.

"I already talked to Artemis about this and she asked me the same question," he said as they entered the ice cream shop, "I pointed out that this would be a great way for us to get to know each other."

"That makes sense." she said walking up to the counter.

"So what's your favorite flavor?" he asked.

"She likes blueberry," a raven haired teen said behind the counter, "And I just put out new tub in a few minutes ago."

"Hi Rachel," Kara said looking up at the teen.

"Hey Kara, how's your head?" Rachel asked with a slight smile.

"It's better now," the young girl replied, "Rachel; I'd like you to meet my dad. Dad, this is my friend Rachel."

"Nice to meet you, Rachel." he said with a nod.

"Likewise," she said before crossing her arms, "Where have you been for the past few years?"

"It's kind of a long story." he said with a sigh.

"I'll take your word for it," she said a little skeptical, "Anyway, what would you two like?"

"I'm not sure. What do you normally get, Kara?" he asked looking at his daughter.

"I get blueberry while mom gets cookie dough," Kara said looking at her father, "But I do have a question."

"Ok, what's that?" he asked.

She looked over at her friend and said, "My former foster dad met Raven, didn't he?"

"That he did." Rachel said with a slight nod.

"Why?" Kara asked.

"No one hurts my friends and gets away with it," Raven replied as a two pint containers started to fill themselves with ice cream.

"How are you doing that?" Wally asked as lids were placed on the containers before sitting next to the register.

"Magic." she said with a slight smile.

"Rachel does that sometimes to help fill the freezer when it's running low." Kara said looking at her dad.

"And I will be here until late trying to fill it." Raven said with a sigh.

"No. You won't," Wally said before disappearing for about ten seconds, "Because it's already done."

Rachel quickly walked over to the freezer and opened to find it completely filled with pint sized containers of ice cream.

"How did you…?" she asked looking at him.

He smiled before saying, "Abracadabra."

She closed the freezer door and walked back over smiling saying, "Ok, wise guy, I'll make you a deal. Tell me how you did that and I will tell you how I did the thing with the containers."

"Oh I already know how you did that, Raven," he said leaning against the counter, "We've met before."

"We have?" Rachel asked raising an eyebrow to his statement.

He held out his hand saying, "Kid Flash. Sorry about my friend, Robin. That guy can be an idiot at times."

"Mom says the same thing about you….but she says it with love." Kara said looking at him with a smile at the last part of the comment.

"I hope you're not here to try and recruit me for that team of yours." Rachel said.

"I'm retired from that life," he said as he looked at his daughter, "For obvious reasons."

"I see." Rachel said.

"I do want to know one thing," he said looking back at the teen, "What did you do to Kara's former foster parent?"

Rachel looked at the speedster and smiled as her eyes went completely black for a second before saying, "If you are trying to imply that I somehow imprisoned that monster's soul and left a lifeless husk of a body behind; then you are talking to the wrong person, because I have no idea what you are talking about."

"I'll be sure to tell the right people about what you know." he said smiling.

"You are not going to tell anyone about what I did." she said glaring at him.

"Are you kidding?" he asked looking at her, "Kara's mom will probably show up here and thank you herself for doing that to her father."

Not sure she heard him right, she gave him a puzzled look before asking, "Kara's grandfather was her foster dad?"

"He's not my grandfather or mom's dad." Kara said looking at her friend with a glare.

"Yeah, we all hate that guy." he said.

"I can tell," Rachel said with a slight laugh, "Anyway, is there anything else you want?"

"A pint of rocky road and a pint of mint chocolate chip," he said after a few seconds thought. The freezer door swung open and two pints joined the other ones on the counter as Rachel said, "One blueberry, one cookie dough, one mint chocolate chip and one rocky road. Will that be all?"

"Yup," Kara said placing a punch card on the counter.

Rachel smiled as she looked at it and said, "And your last visit gave you at enough points to use it."

"Use what?" Wally asked a little puzzled.

"The store's point card," Rachel said holding it up for a second, "After ten purchases; the eleventh one is free, and this is the eleventh purchase."

"I think I just found a new ice cream shop." he said smiling.

"It was certainly nice meeting you, Kara's dad." she said after placing their order in a bag and handing it to them.

"Likewise, Rachel, and it's Wally." he said with a nod then a smile.

"Bye Rachel." Kara said waving at her friend before leaving.

As the two walked down the street, Wally looked down at his daughter and asked, "So how do you know Rachel?"

"She comes and helps mom sometimes in class," she replied smiling, "Did you ever run with mom?"

"Almost always," he said smiling at the memories, "If she needed to be somewhere, I'd scoop her up and run."

"I've run with Barry before," she said glancing up at him, "I didn't care for it."

"I see," he said with a slight nod, "You want to try running with me?"

"We won't get in trouble, will we?" she asked, a little nervous.

"We won't, I promise." he assured her.

She was quiet for a few seconds before saying quietly, "Ok."

He handed her the bag before scooping her up in his arms.

"Everything is going to go by pretty fast. So hang on to that bag, OK?" he said looking at her, "And I promise I will never drop you on purpose."

"I believe you," she said holding on to the bag tightly.

"Then let's go home," he said he took off running. The world rushed by as the young girl let out a scream of joy. The ride didn't last long, the next thing the girl knew the two of them were standing in their living room.

"I take it she convinced you to run with her." Artemis said looking up from her book from where she was sitting on the couch.

"No, I convinced her," he said setting his daughter down, "We also found out what happened to a certain dirt bag we all know and hate."

"Which dirt bag, what happened, and what is in the bag?" Artemis asked.

"Apparently Lawrence met Raven and we got ice cream for desert tonight." he replied before putting taking the bag and putting it in the freezer.

"I see," she said looking over at her daughter. The young girl seemed to be vibrating in her seat as she kept glancing between her parents.

"Just this once, Kara," Artemis said with a slight laugh.

A small spark of lightning crackled out of the corner of the girl's eye before zipping over to her father and giving him a massive hug.

"ThankyouThankyouThankyou," she said in a rush with a massive smile, "Thatwassomuchfun. Canwedoitagain? Pleasedad?"

"And congratulations, Wally," Artemis said with an amused smile watching the two, "You've created a monster."

"How did I create a monster?" he asked looking at his girlfriend surprised, "Let alone how did Kara do that?"

"Part of Kara's ability is to be able to use the stored light she has to replicate other people's powers," she said patting the cushion next to her, "Come sit by me, Kara."

The young girl nodded before sipping over to the cushion next to her mother.

"Tired?" Artemis asked knowing what was about to happen.

"Nope," Kara replied before leaning sideways to the point she fell onto the couch asleep.

"And she will be out for half an hour." Artemis said looking back over at the speedster.

"I take it this has happened before." he said walking over.

"This happened to Zatara when he was working with her last time," she said before going back to her book, "She replicated the Canary Cry and was out for half an hour."

"At least they found that out about her during training," he said walking over. He scooped his girlfriend up off the couch.

"Wally. What are you doing?" she asked with a laughing.

He sat down where she had been with her in his lap and said, "Spending some well needed time with the woman I love. My last test with STAR Labs was yesterday and they said the only thing different about me is that I don't have a high as metabolism as I used to."

"You mean….no more Kid Stomach?" she asked.

"Not anymore," he said taking her hand in his, "My metabolism has actually returned to what it was before I became Kid Flash. I can still run like I used to, but I'm not as hungry as I used to get. I mean seriously, I ran all the way here from an ice cream shop that is about a mile away carrying our daughter and I'm not really that hungry. I stopped for lunch at a pizza place and order three large pizza's like I used too; two of them are sitting in the fridge untouched and I was only able to eat half of the third one."

Artemis sat there stunned for a few seconds before smiling a little and saying, "I guess we don't have to worry about dinner tonight, huh?"

"That also means our food bill won't be as high as it used to be," he said brushing her hair back.

They sat there in silence for a few moments content to be in each other's arms before Wally said, "There is something I need to do though."

"Besides tell Dick you're back?" Artemis asked with a light smile.

"That…but I was talking about this." he said before pressing his lips to hers in a gentle kiss.


	24. Chapter Twenty-Four: Parents

Chapter Twenty-Four

Parents...

Kara looked up from her book to find her mother standing over her.

"Is something wrong?" the young girl asked a little nervously.

"We have guest coming and I can't find your father." Artemis said crossing her arms.

"Dad said something about going to see an old friend," Kara stated before her family suddenly appeared next to her on the couch.

"Wally, where have you been?"

"I'll tell you as long as you say I was here with you and Kara." he said smiling.

"What did you do?" she asked crossing her arms.

"I wasn't out trolling Dick it that is what you're asking," he said before looking at his daughter, "What are you reading?"

"Do not change the subject, Wally," Artemis said trying to stay calm, "And I'm serious about this, where were you?"

"Please dad?" Kara asked looking at her father, "No secrets."

The speedster was quiet for a few seconds before he sighed and said, "Barbara asked me to help her in making Dick think he's being haunted by my ghost."

"Please tell me you're joking," Artemis said reaching up and pinching the bridge of her nose, "Doesn't he already know you're back anyway?"

"Babs said she would tell Less that dad's back." Kara said before they heard someone knocking, "I got it."

"You and I are going to have a talk about this later." Artemis said as the young girl went to answer the door.

"Whatever you say, beautiful," he said before looking towards the door, "Hey Zee, what's up?"

"My father is going out with Artemis's mother tomorrow night," the magician said looking at the speedster as she entered, "Apparently someone told him that the two of them would make a cute couple."

"Is that so?" Artemis asked as she slowly looked at her daughter.

"They actually would if you think about it." Wally said speaking up.

"Says the man that gave Zee's father Grandma Paula's address," Kara said closing the door.

"You did what?" Zee and Artemis asked looking at the speedster.

"Before you two kill me, I want it on record that he asked me for Paula's address and phone number." he said holding his hands up.

Artemis was silent for a few seconds before looking at the magician and said, "Good job, Wall-man. Now would you mind doing a quick pick-up before the others get here?"

"Uh sure." he said as he watched his girlfriend head to the kitchen.

Zatanna followed her friend and asked, "Are you seriously ok with this?"

The blonde turned to face her friend before saying, "With Wally giving my mom's number out like that? No, but I trust your father. And besides, I think you are missing something important here."

"And what might that be?" Zatanna asked.

"I know you and your father claim Kara as family because of how she freed him from Nabu," Artemis said as she started to smile, "so if our parents end up together, then it becomes official."

"Good point." the magician said after a moment's thought.

"It also means that Jade becomes your sister in-law." Wally said walking past them carrying a trash bag.

"Which means the four of us can gang up on Roy and Wally if they're being stupid." Artemis said as Kara walked over to them.

"I like that idea." Zatanna said smiling.

"And you can help Barbara and I troll Less," Kara said taking her mother's hand in hers.

"You're never going to call him Dick again…..are you?" Zee asked.

"Nope, he's hurt Barbara too much…..and if he does one more time he really is going to be Less, but the question is how will Barbara do it." Kara answered.

Artemis and Zatanna busted out laughing at that remark.

"Ok, you sold me," Zatanna said smiling, "Now what do you two have planned for Spring Break?"

"Kara and I are dragging Wally to his parents," Artemis said sounding a little upset over it, "I understand he's been busy with STAR Labs and finding a job, but he hasn't told them he's back yet."

"Why does that not surprise me?" Zatanna said before the door was kicked open.

They looked over and were surprised to see an upset Mary and Rudy West standing in the doorway with Rudy holding their son in a headlock.

"Start talking mister." Mary said on the verge of tears.

For the next half hour, Artemis explained everything that had happened. During the explanation, Rudy had let his son go but stopped him from hiding behind his girlfriend. Once the blonde finished her tale, Mary slowly reached up and Gibbs slapped her son.

"That's for not telling me you were back yet," she said before smacking him again, "That's for all the crap you've put Artemis, your father, and I through."

"Sorry guys," he said rubbing the back of his head, "And yes, I've already apologized to Artemis for all this and to Kara for hurting her."

"You hurt my granddaughter?" his mother asked glaring at him.

"It was an accident, Grandma Mary." Kara said as a white transparent shell appeared around her father.

"Kara got thrown into a wall after she came in contact with Wally while he was still that energy mass." Artemis explained.

"How bad was she hurt?" Rudy asked.

"Minor concussion and she had a burn on her right hand." she answered.

Mary glared at her son for a few seconds before walking over and picking her granddaughter up in a hug and said, "I'm just glad you're ok, and thank you for bringing him back."

"You're welcome, grandma." Kara said returning the hug.

"Now that we got that settled," Artemis said looking at the speedster, "Explain to me how you were haunting your best friend."

"Rearrange his apartment three times in one day," he said trying not to laugh, "Switch out his sunglasses with a pair that has a mini-speaker built in that plays different things I used to say around him, popped in different places he was at today just long enough for him to do a double take."

"You're evil, you know that?" Rudy asked with a slight chuckle.

"Actually all that was Barbara's idea," Wally said looking at his father before turning his attention back to Artemis; "She does want to know if she can borrow Kara for a few hours tomorrow."

Before the former archer could even ask, a translucent image of the speedster appeared next to him as Kara said, "I think I know why."

"It is so tempting to let you help her disturb Grayson," Artemis said trying not to laugh, "But we have plans this weekend, so I'm afraid not."

"Oh come on, Artemis. She would have a blast working with me." Wally said.

"I said no," she said looking at her boyfriend, "And did you just whine?"

"N-no." he said nervously.

"He did." Kara said smiling.

"Oh he whined." Rudy said looking at his son.

"I am did not whine," Wally said glaring at his father.

"Wallace Rudolph West," Mary said setting her granddaughter in a chair, "Yes or no."

The speedster flinched and slowly looked over at his mother before saying, "Yeah, I whined. I'm sorry."

"You're training with me for the next week for whining," Artemis said staring at her boyfriend as she crossed her arms, "And you're sleeping on the couch for lying to me."

"Oh man." Wally said before walking over and sitting on the couch.

"And with that, I think I better go," Zatanna said walking to the door, "I have monitor duty tonight in an hour. See you guys tomorrow."

"Bye Zee." Kara said before her friend left.

"Artemis," Mary said turning to look at the blonde; "Is there anything else you haven't told us yet?"

"I got hit by lightning." Kara said quietly.

"We know, sweetie, Barry told us about that," Mary said looking at the young girl.

"The only thing I hadn't told you about was Wally being back," Artemis said holding her hands up. "We wanted to wait for the final results from STAR Labs about me being back before letting you know." Wally said.

"And I take it the invite was because they arrived." Mary said.

Artemis and Wally shared a brief look before they asked, "What invite?"

"The one you sent us via email earlier today." Rudy said.

"Neither one of us have been on the…computer," Artemis said slowly looking at her daughter, "Kara, did you send your grandparents a dinner invite?"

The young girl pointed at an envelope on the coffee table saying, "Only because dad's results arrived today. I thought they would want to be here when you opened them."

"You know she's right?" Rudy asked looking at the girl's mother.

"Oh I know," Artemis said walking over and hugging her daughter, "Now, how about we eat dinner then open that letter?"

"I hope you made enough for everyone considering Wally's appetite," Rudy said as they walked over to the kitchen.

"Actually, my appetite is like it was before I got my speed," Wally said before zipping into the kitchen and setting the table in less than a second, "But I'm still just as fast."

Rudy and Mary were shocked, but just the fact that Wally's back after his sacrifice in the Arctic, these parents weren't going to argue about how long he was gone…they were just happy their son was back.


	25. Chapter Twenty-Five: Haunting

Chapter Twenty-Five

Haunting...

The first day of Spring Break hit and Kara was super excited. Not just because of being able to spend a week with her folks with no school, but because Wally had convinced Artemis into going out for dinner. At first, the former archer had repeatedly shot down the idea of going out until Kara revealed she had never been to a restaurant before. After making a few calls, Friday night found the three of them at one of the nicest restaurants in Gotham.

"This place is beautiful." Kara whispered as she looked around.

"Yeah, I remember the last time your mom and I was here," Wally said looking around a little, "Dick invited us to celebrate Barbara's birthday."

"Speaking of our friends," Artemis said looking across the room, "Looks like our redheaded friend was right."

Wally looked over and sighed before asking, "Are you sure I can't haunt him? I mean he doesn't even know I'm back yet."

"And you are not going to tell him you're back," Artemis said glaring at him, "Tonight is for the three of us. Got it?"

"Ok. Ok. I got it." he said before they heard a crash. They looked over to see their friend being helped to his feet by a waiter before turning his chair upright.

"I thought I said no haunting, Kara?" Artemis said looking at her daughter.

"He asked for that." Kara said not sounding too happy.

"I don't doubt it." Artemis said as her phone started ringing.

"I thought we agreed to no cell phones tonight." Wally said leaning back in his seat a little.

"No, we agreed to have them on silent," she said checking the caller ID, "That's weird."

"What is mom?" Kara asked looking at her mother.

"It's Robin," Artemis replied before answering it, "Robin? What's wrong?"

"Please tell me you know where Dick is." the young detective said sounding a little worried.

"Yeah, why?" she asked looking at Wally and her daughter.

"He and Barbara got into a massive fight about him cheating on her….." he replied before a different voice came on the phone, "Artemis, its Karen. If you know where that jerk is, you better tell me right now."

"Calm down Karen." Artemis said a little surprised.

"I'll calm down as soon as I kick his head in." Karen growled.

"I have a feeling he said a few things he shouldn't have." Artemis said with a sigh.

"You don't want to know all that got said," Karen said before a third voice came on the line, "Do not tell her or anyone where he is."

"M'gann, what is going on?" Artemis asked a little puzzled.

"From what I understand; Barbara tried to tell him something about Wally and he suddenly replied Wally coming back to life is like her trying to save their relationship. Not happening." the Martian stated.

"Oh that's it," Artemis said sounding upset, "M'gann; let everyone know to stay away from Grayson. He's mine." She ended the call and put her phone away before relaying what she had been told.

"I'm going to hurt him." Wally said glaring over at his friend.

"Actually, I have a better idea;" Artemis said with an evil grin, "Remember that 'ghost' version of you Kara made the night your parents found out you were back? What if we paired it up with that speaker you hid in his sunglasses?"

Wally started to smile as he realized what the blondes ideal was then asked, "Have I ever told you how much I love your evil side when it comes to trolling him?"

"Tell me later," she said before looking at her daughter, "Sorry for asking you to do this, sweetie."

"Its fine," the young girl said glancing at her mother before looking back over at her parents' friend, "Just be sure to record this."

They waited a few minutes till the woman their friend was with left for the bathroom before Wally pulled out his phone.

"Show time," he said punching in a number sequence.

Once the phone linked to the speaker, he gave his daughter a slight nod before saying, "You're a real piece of work, you know that Dick?"

Artemis placed a hand over her mouth to try not to laugh as she recorded what was going on.

"I'm talking about what you said to Barbara," he said sounding cross, "Don't give me that crap, Grayson. You know exactly what I'm talking about. Telling her your relationship is about as salvageable as me coming back from the grave."

"Sorry dad." Kara said as the ghost construct disappeared.

"It's ok, sweetie." her mother mouthed at her.

Wally hit a button on his phone before putting it down and looked at his daughter saying, "And you were perfect, munchkin. You really were."

"Thanks dad," Kara with a slight smile.

"Well that's a new one," Artemis said looking at her boyfriend, "She lets Barry call her Pixie, Jade and Roy will call her Cottontail, and Bart keeps call her squirt."

"Bart's an idiot," Kara said as the waiter walked up with their orders.

"Why do you have so many nick names?" Wally asked as they started eating.

"Aunt Jade said hers is because I like bunnies and Barry said it's because I remind him of one," the young girl said looking at her father.

"Now why do you say Bart's an idiot?" he asked looking at the young girl, "Besides the obvious."

"The Tylenol incident," she said pushing her carrots to one side of her plate, "And he comes off as a know it all."

"There's kind of a reason for him being like that." Artemis said a little leery.

"Please tell me isn't not because he likes me." Kara asked looking at her mother.

"If he does, it's because you're family," he said glancing over at his friend, "Hold that thought."

He hit the button on his phone before saying, "Seriously, this is who you cheated on Babs with?"

He hit the button again and tried not to laugh as Kara asked, "What are you going to do with the recording, mom?"

"Send it to Barbara." her mother replied with a slightly evil grin.

They continued to eat as they made small talk for the rest of their meal, with them stopping occasionally to pick on their friend. Kara had about finished eating when Wally asked, "How come you haven't touched your carrots, munchkin?"

"I'm allergic to them." she said as one of the carrots started to glow a soft white before standing up.

"Kara, what are you doing?" Artemis asked in a hushed tone.

"You'll see," she said as more of her vegetables started to stand up.

They started to dance around on her plate before suddenly jumping to other tables and attacking different customer's silverware. Her parents watched as each of the customers started to scream before running out. As the each one raced for the door, the carrots quickly moved from table to table till they started going after Dick's date.

"My god, she's a miniature of us," Wally said trying not to laugh as the woman ran from the room.

Not wasting a moment, Wally quickly zipped over to the empty seat and asked, "Still think you're not being haunted?"

"You better be thankful you're not alive," Dick said glaring at his friend, "Because I would make you wish you were still dead."

"Just because I made the chick you're cheating on Barbara with run out?" Wally asked with a slight smile, "No offense, but I don't feel the least bit sorry for doing that."

"Why are you even here?" Dick asked.

"To haunt you for as long as it takes for you to apologize to Barbara." Wally said simply.

"Me apologize to her?" Dick asked as he started to get upset, "She is the one that started that whole argument."

"But you made her cry." Wally said calmly.

"She should have kept her nose out of my business." Dick retorted placing his hands on the table as he stood up.

"You shouldn't have cheated on her." Wally said watching his friend.

"And this is coming from the biggest flirt I've ever met," Dick said with a slight laugh.

"What can I say? Women like a man that doesn't hide behind sunglasses." Wally said with a shrug.

"Is that so?" Dick asked letting his angry flare, "Then tell me, WALL-MAN, do you think Artemis still loves you considering you-" The detective's sentence was cut short when the speedster's fist connected with his jaw. The impact of the blow had enough force that caused Dick to spin one hundred eighty degrees before falling to the floor.

"What the heck, Wally?" Dick said as he rubbed his jaw.

"Felt real, didn't it?" Wally asked walking over and kneeling next to his best friend. Dick opened his mouth to say something, but stopped as he realized something.

"By the looks of it, that punch jump started your brain." Wally said with a smirk.

"It can't be?" Dick whispered looking at the speedster, "W-W-Wally?"

"Surprised? Good," Wally said before punching his friend again, "That's for Barbara and what you were going to said about Artemis. Now you better go apologize or I'll do something worse than hitting you. Oh and thanks for footing the bill; got to run."

Giving his signature grin, Wally quickly stood up and picked up his family before running from the room….after leaving their check with a dumbfounded Dick Grayson.


	26. Chapter Twenty-Six: Apology

Chapter Twenty-Six

Apology...

The sound of something hitting a wall woke Artemis from a dead sleep.

At first she thought it was the resident speedster until she heard Wally ask from beside her, "What was that?"

"I'm not sure." she said silently sleeping from their bed. She quickly grabbed her crossbow as something came crashing through the door. She quickly took aim and froze as she saw their friend Nightwing trying to get up.

"What happened to you?" she asked lowering her crossbow.

"I think I know," Wally said motioning towards the doorway.

She looked over to see their daughter standing there with a construct mace and looking ticked off. Artemis put the item from her hero days away before walking over and picking Kara up. The mace disappeared as the young girl started crying.

"It's ok, Kara. I got you," Artemis said trying to calm her daughter down, "No one's going to hurt you."

The young girl let out a soft whimper as she buried her face into her mother's shoulder.

"Man…that kid hits hard." Nightwing said slowly sitting up.

"You have five minutes to get out of my home, Grayson," Artemis said glaring at him, "Why are you even here, anyway?"

"To apologize," he said looking at her, "You more than likely heard the conversation me and Wally had back at the restaurant. I wanted to stop in and say I'm sorry."

"Did you apologize to Barbara?" she asked.

He was silent for a few seconds before saying, "She's refusing to talk to me."

Artemis walked towards the hall saying, "When she forgives you, I'll listen to your apology. Not until then."

"You're not going to help me talk to her, are you?" he asked sighing.

"This is your mess, not mine." she said before heading to her daughter's room.

"Why are you even here?" Wally asked looking at his friend.

The detective gave a slight laugh before turning his head and mumbling something.

"You have got to be kidding me," Wally said getting out of bed and heading towards his girlfriend, "Hey Artemis, you're going to laugh when you hear this."

"What are you talking about?" she asked slowly closing the door to their daughter's room.

"I asked Dick why he was here." he said trying not to laugh.

"Ok, I'll bite," she said leaning against the wall as she looked at him, "Why is he here?"

"He's hiding from the Redheaded League," he said with a slight laugh, "He's running from something in a book."

"It's not a joke, Wally." Dick said walking up behind him.

"Oh come on, dude," Wally said turning to face his friend, "You really expect me to believe that."

"Wally…the Redheaded League is what Shayera, Barbara, Kara, Roy and Bart are called on Watchtower." Artemis said with an amused look on her face.

"Ok, NOW I believe it," the speedster said before patting his friend on the shoulder, "I'm going back to bed."

"Same," Artemis said before following her boyfriend, "And I meant what I said, Dick; until Barbara forgives you; you're not welcome here."

"Do you think we were a little harsh on him?" Wally asked getting in bed.

"Depends on who you ask," she said sitting next to him, "Barbara would say we weren't harsh enough."

"I think Bat's would say the same thing." he said before Dick walked in.

"How can you two be so calm about this?" the detective asked a little upset.

"Because we're not the ones that screwed up, Dick," Wally said looking at his friend. "And I'm trying not to kill you were you stand." Artemis said coldly.

"Oh come on, Artemis. You wouldn't kill me." Dick said looking at her.

She stood up and walked over to him saying, "When Kara first moved in, I told her that the bedroom doors are to be closed only if we have company or you want to be alone. Since then; I have never closed the door to my room… or her room until tonight. And the biggest reason why is because of my father. Apparently, he would lock her in her room unless he was trying to teach her something no matter what was happening. Now the instant you leave, I will be opening the door to her room to let her know in the morning that everything is fine." Artemis said as her finger started to tighter over her crossbow trigger. "But more importantly, I don't want there to be any secrets between us. Now this is the last time I am going to tell you this; when Barbara forgives you, I'll forgive you. Until then or you're on the verge of DEATH, don't come here unless you're volunteering to be my new pincushion. You have one minute left before I call one of the other reds and let them know where you are."

The room was silent for a few seconds before Dick asked, "You're serious?"

"Do I look like I'm joking, Richard?" Artemis said glaring at him. Sensing this wasn't going to end well if Dick was around after his minute was up; Wally used his speed to take his longtime friend outside.

"No offense, Dick, but I think you might want to take her advice this time," the speedster said calmly, "She's extremely protective over Kara."

"I noticed," Dick said with a sigh, "I was kind of hoping to ask her opinion on apologizing to Babs."

"Sorry to say this, but you're on your own this time," Wally said looking at his friend, "But if you still want Artemis' advice, call first." With a final nod, the speedster went back inside his home to find Artemis holding their daughter as she apologized to her.

"Is everything ok?" he asked walking over.

Artemis looked up at him as tears fell down her face saying, "No." Upon seeing the tears, he walked over and wrapped them both in a tight hug.

"Mommy, what's wrong?" Kara asked not sure why her mother was crying.

"I promised myself I would never close a door to you, sweetie," Artemis said looking at the young girl, "And I broke that promise tonight."

"In all fairness, the only reason you did was because of Dick." he said before kissing her temple.

"Remind me to hurt him later." Artemis said with a sniff.

"From what I heard Barbara say, he really is going to be 'less' when she's done with him." Kara stated, hoping to ease her mother's mind about what just happened and Artemis giggled.

"Actually, Artemis, I think you need a vacation." he said.

"She has been working a lot." Kara said sighting her gaze to her father.

"Ok that's it," he said with a nod, "As of right now, you are on vacation, Artemis."

"I don't think so, Wally," Artemis said looking at him, "I still have classes this week."

"Didn't Spring Break start tonight?" Kara asked a little puzzled.

"No students, no classes," he said smiling, "Artemis, you're on vacation."

"Oh really, then what are we going to do, Baywatch?" Artemis asked sounding a little annoyed, "We don't have a lot in our savings anymore."

"I have an idea of something we can do," he said before giving her a tender kiss, "But that can wait till morning. Because I think we all need some sleep."

"I like sleep…" Kara said resting her head on her mother's shoulder before yawning.

"Then let's get you back in bed." Artemis said wiping a tear from her eyes.

After tucking the young girl in, Artemis walked back to her room with Wally.

"I kind of wondered why you yelled at me about closing the bedroom door after you got off work that one time," he said watching her, "But I have a feeling there is more to the story than that."

"Can we not talk about it right now?" she asked sitting on the bed.

"Artemis, you know you can tell me anytime you're ready," he said placing a hand on her back, "Even if it means you never tell me, I understand."

"Thanks, Wally." she said leaning into him. He wrapped his arms around her and held her close.

It wasn't long after that the speedster realized that his girlfriend had fallen asleep in his arms. Being careful not to wake her, he slowly eased her back on to the bed and flipped the covers over her. He started to move to his side of the bed when he noticed something move out of the corner of his eye. He looked towards the door to find Kara standing there holding a stuffed fox.

"Is everything ok, Kara?" he asked concerned.

"I had a bad dream," she said squeezing her stuffed toy, "Can I sleep with you and mom tonight?"

"Sure thing," he said smiling, "But you are going to have to be quiet. Artemis is already asleep."

"Thank you daddy." she whispered before walking over to the bed. She climbed in between her parents and soon fell asleep.

'They've been through so much already,' he watching his family sleep, 'Please let this be the end of the bad times for them.'

He stayed like that for a few minutes before closing his eyes and falling asleep.


	27. Chapter 27: Date Night

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Date Night...

It wasn't that often that Kara was allowed to spend the night at one of her friends'; but she always ended up having a lot of fun when those times did happen. While she had stayed only with members of the team so far, she was a little surprised to find out she was going to be staying with a member of the League. At first she was told that Diana was going to be watching her, but do to a last second emergency she ended up at Barbara's place. In all actuality the young girl didn't mind; but one hour after arriving found her sitting on the couch next to her fellow redhead with who Barbara was calling the 'bane of her existence' sitting across from them.

"Well Richard," Barbara said crossing her arms, "You wanted to talk. You know the rules."

He reached up and took removed his sunglasses before saying, "I really screwed up this time, Babs."

"Barbara," she said leaning back in her seat, "I will tell you if you can call me Babs."

"Sorry Barbara," he said placing his sunglasses on the table.

"Why are you here?" she asked getting annoyed.

"I came to apologize for the way I've been acting." he said looking at her.

"Go on…." she said patiently.

"Over the past few months I have ignored you, argued with you over the smallest things, broken off plans constantly," he said solemnly, "Largely because I was angry about something I found out."

"And what pray tell was that?" she asked.

He was silent for a few seconds before saying, "According to a friend at Wayne Tech, there was a chance that Wally could be brought back. Ever since I found that out, I've been trying to make his theory a reality."

"Wait a minute; you mean to tell me, that you reason for being a jerk is because you've stressing out on how to bring Wally back?" she asked.

"More like putting up with a stuck up brat," he said leaning back in the chair, "The man that owned a piece of what I needed said I could have it…..if I took his daughter out on a date. Well that changed from one date to two, to nine, to everyday for the past three months."

"Sounds like a psycho to me." Kara whispered.

"I agree." Barbara muttered.

"That she was." he said sighing.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Barbara asked.

"Because if I did, then the deal was off," he said before rubbing his eyes, "Granted I ended the deal once I found out Wally was back."

"At least you did something right." she said.

"But I am seriously sorry about the way I have treated you these past few months." he said looking at her.

"I forgive you, but you have a LOT to do in order to get back in my good graces," she said with a slight smile, "You can start by buying Kara and I dinner."

"Sure thing, Barbara," he said reaching for his phone, "Does Chinese sound good?"

"Only if you want me to hit you like I did when you snuck into my room Friday night." Kara said glaring at him.

"You did what?" Barbara asked surprised.

"I thought it was the bathroom I was entering. I swear." he said holding his hands up.

"You stepped on my fox, about stepped on me, and made my mom cry." the young girl said glaring at him.

"And you hit me with a mace," he retorted looking at her. "So we're even."

"Prove it," she said before Barbara held a hand up in front of her stopping the argument.

"Enough you two," the older redhead said looking from one to the other, "And don't either one of you say the other started it."

The other two glanced at each other and smiled before turning to face their host and saying together, "You started it!"

"What?" Barbara asked surprised, "How did I start it?"

"You allowed me to come over the night you were watching Kara." Dick said.

"And you didn't hogtie him and demand to know what was going on with him," Kara stated.

"Thus, you started it." he said with a smug grin.

"First off, pixie boots, I didn't start this," Barbara said glaring at her friend, "You started it by not letting anyone, not even Bruce, know what was going on, and secondly Kara, Diana refused to let me borrow her lasso of truth to use on him."

"Then why didn't you ask Cassie?" the young girl asked simply, "She has one too, doesn't she?"

Barbara opened her mouth to argue the point but stopped.

"You just realized she's right, didn't you?" Dick asked with a slight laugh.

She tossed the phone at him and said, "Oh shut up and order two pizzas."

"Don't have too." he said before they heard a knock on the door.

"I got it," Kara said before going over to answer it.

"You're banned from here until Artemis and Kara forgives you once the pizzas arrive." Barbara said glaring at her friend.

"Did someone say pizza?" Cassie said walking in carrying a couple of pizzas followed by Kara.

"Hey Cass, your date with Robin fell through?" Dick asked.

"He got called for a mission as I picked up the pizzas," the Amazon said with a sigh, "What's going on here?"

"Dick was going to order dinner for Barbara and I after he calls Oliver to tell him why he's been a jerk to her." Kara said.

"Why does he have to call Ol…," Barbara started to ask before it dawned on her, "The League has pool going, don't they?"

The young girl nodded saying, "Shayera put thirty down under our names for someone blackmailing him and Bart was banned from entering it."

"Why does that not surprise me?" the redhead asked before leaning back against the couch.

"No offense, but Artemis is going to be mad when she finds out about this." Dick said with a slight laugh.

"Mom had five on you and Batman acting out scenes from 'Fifty Shades of Grey,'" Kara said looking at him.

The room was quiet for a few minutes before Cassie put the pizzas on the coffee table saying, "I always thought there was something going on between those two."

Kara started to snicker as Dick looked at the blonde and said, "Not funny, Cassie."

"I thought it was funny," Barbara said taking her phone back from her friend, "Now out, Dick."

"OK. Ok." he said getting to his feet and heading to the door.

"So what was that all about?" Cassie asked sitting in a chair.

"Mom banned Dick from our place until he apologizes to Barbara." Kara said glancing at the pizza boxes, "Why are you here, Cassie?"

"Barbara said something about a video she wanted me to see," the Amazon replied before setting the boxes side by side, "Something about you trolling Dick."

"I wouldn't eat anything till after you watch that video if I were you," Kara said a little nervously, "Dad showed Uncle Barry during lunch and he about choked four times."

"Ok, now I want to see this more than ever." Barbara said before going to grab her laptop.

After hooking it up to the TV, they sat and watched the footage from a few nights prior. It was a good thing they had decided to listen for they all ended up laughing through the entire video.

"I don't believe you two did that." Barbara said between laughs.

"Whose idea was it when it came to the carrots?" Cassie asked wiping her eyes.

"Um, I got bored." Kara said blushing.

"I am so glad we know you." Barbara said before going to get some drinks.

"Dad called me a miniature version of him and mom." Kara said smiling.

"I can see why after watching that," Cassie said looking at the young girl, "You are incredible."

"Thanks, Cassie." Kara said as Barbara walked back in.

"So what do you two want to watch now?" Barbara asked setting the drinks on the table.

"Doesn't matter to me." the young girl said looking at her friend.

"If you don't mind, I do have a question," Cassie said flipping the boxes open, "What's it like having Wally as a dad?"

"Really fun actually," Kara said with a slight giggle, "I freaked him out when I ran as fast as he did."

"Artemis told me about that," Cassie said grabbing a slice, "She also said that you passed out for half an hour."

"Apparently," Kara said picking up a slice of pizza, "Mom said that dad's reaction was funnier than Uncle Roy's when he broke unwritten rule three."

"Rule three?" Barbara asked a little puzzled.

"Never make eye contact with another human being while eating a banana," the young girl replied simply, "He did that while Aunt Jade was eating one. Not sure why it's an unwritten rule, though."

"You're too young to know." Cassie and Barbara said together turning a little pink.

With that answered, the three girls ate their pizza, but the original question still remained.

"Kara; have you ever heard of a trilogy of movies called High School Musical?" Cassie asked.

"I think I heard a song from one…..but I'm not really sure."

"Then that's what we'll watch." Cassie said with a smile.

"I can't stand them myself….but maybe if I know the whole story…."

"You've never seen them from front to end?" Cassie asked Barbara.

"Nope."

"Then it's settled, High School Musical marathon it is."

With that, Cassie flew out of the house and returned about ten minutes later with all three movies rented from the closest video store.


	28. Chapter Twenty-Eight: Deja vu

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Deja vu...

The week seemed to fly by quickly for the young Flash family because it wasn't long before school was back in session. But it wasn't until a week later that Artemis found herself being asked to sit in on her daughter's gym class. From what she understood, some of the teachers had started to complain that the gym teacher was bullying some of the students. Even Kara had stated that said teacher would single out certain students if they did something wrong. It was because of this, Artemis had agreed to sit in on her class' gym time.

She slipped quietly into the gym a few minutes after class had started and leaned back against a wall.

'So this is what Déjà vu feels like,' she thought watching her students play dodgeball.

Like in her coma dream, some of the students were sitting on the sidelines watching the others play. It wasn't until about five minutes in that one of the balls came rolling to a stop in front of her.

'Please, PLEASE, do not let this be like that dream.' she thought as she reacted down and picked the ball up.

She glanced at the teacher to find he was more preoccupied with the game than what she was doing.

'I wonder how long it will take before he realizes I have this.' she thought. Her gaze slowly moved towards the students on the side to find her daughter watching her. She held a finger up to her lips and winked letting the young girl know not to say anything.

Kara returned the gesture before the gym teacher suddenly yelled, "Crock, you know better than to daydream in my class. Front and center now. You're facing the boys alone."

The young girl looked at the teacher for a brief second before getting to her feet slowly saying, "Yes sir."

As she went to over to one side of the gym, she stole a glance at her mother to see her give a slight flip of her right hand and mouthed 'make it count'.

A smile spread across the girls face as she took her place on the field.

"Ready?" the teacher asked looking at the one side. He never bothered asking the young girl before blowing his whistle.

Using what she had been taught, Kara started to dodge each of the projectiles that were thrown at her.

'So the complaints are true.' Artemis thought. She pushed off from the wall and walked over to the gym teacher as she watched her daughter start to catch the dodgeballs and throw them back.

"You do realize this can be considered bullying don't you?" she asked standing next to the teacher.

"You daydream in my class and you will get punished however I see fit," he said sounding upset, "Now get back over to where the rest of the girls are or go to the office."

Artemis smiled as she said, "Make me." The teacher turned around and froze seeing it was the blonde teacher.

"Looks like the complaints against you are true," she said before turning to watch the game, "And yes, the principal will be hearing about this."

Once the last of the students was eliminated, Kara looked over at her mom and asked, "Is it lunch time yet?"

"Lunch was a few hours ago, Kara," her mother said looking at the gym teacher, "Jenny, run to the office and ask the principal to come here for a minute. I want the rest of you to go relax."

"Nobody move!" the gym teacher yelled as he looked Artemis in the eyes, "All of you are still on my time."

"And you still have at least three other limbs I haven't broken yet," she retorted, "Want that number to become zero?"

"That won't be necessary," they heard a voice say from the door. Everyone looked over to see the principal standing next to a well-dressed business man.

"Principal Blackthorn." Artemis said watching the gym teacher out of the corner of her eyes.

"So I take it the complaints were true?" he asked walking over.

"Every word." she said turning to face the gym teacher.

"Oh come on, Paul; you're not seriously going to listen to some skirt are you?" the gym teacher asked looking the principal.

"I'm not the one that has one student face the rest in a one on twelve game of dodgeball," she said coldly, "Especially for doing nothing more than waving at their own mother."

"That's it, Terry," Paul said with a frown, "You're done. Go clean out your desk and get out."

"Are you kidding me, Paul?" Terry asked stunned, "You're going to take the word of some stupid blonde?"

"My mom doesn't come to work drunk, use bad language in front of us, or threaten to smack us for asking to use the bathroom." Kara said standing next to her mother.

"Shut your mouth, Crock, or else." the former gym teacher barked at the young girl.

Artemis grabbed the front of the man's shirt and pulled him close before saying, "Threaten my daughter again, and it will be the last thing you do."

She shoved the man backwards as the principal said, "Last time I'm going to tell you this, Terry. Get out, or I call the cops." Terry didn't say a word as he left the gym.

"Would've be fun to watch him get dragged out," Artemis said before looking over at the man that had entered with the principal, "No offense, but who's the guy in the suit?"

"This guy is Clark Kent, from the Daily Planet," the principal says looking at her, "He's here to do a story on you."

"Why me?" she asked a little surprised.

"Ms. Crock, out of every elementary school that was recently tested, your class alone had the highest test scores in recent history," Clark said looking at her, "I was actually hoping to sit in on your class for the rest of the day."

"No one just sits in on my class," she said looking at the reporter, "You want to stay, than you put an effort into wanting to be there."

"Ms. Crock, why don't you go ahead and show Mr. Kent where your classroom is?" the principal said with a smile, "I'll send your students back after gym."

"Yes, of course. Right this way, Mr. Kent." she said before heading towards the exit.

Once they were in the hall, she looked at him and whispered, "What are you even doing here, Clark?"

"It's like I told your principal," he replied just as soft, "My boss sent me here to find out why a first grade class had the highest test scores in the past ten years."

"You're kidding?" she asked a little skeptical.

"Your class' score beat the combined scores of twenty-four smartest students at Gotham Academy," he said as they reached her classroom.

"Ok, now what's the unofficial reason you're here?" she asked once they were inside.

He waited till the door had closed before saying, "I will explain that in a minute."

"You have no idea how much I hate that phrase," she said before sitting at her desk, "Did my class actually beat Gotham Academy?"

"The only class that even comes close to the score yours hit was when Dick Grayson was there," he said pulling up a chair and sitting down, "You beat them by one point."

She was silent for a few seconds before saying, "Outside of knowing a certain redhead that is going to have a hay day once he finds that out; I'm not sure what to say."

"I can think of a few others that will probably act the same way," he said smiling, "Especially when it comes to a certain person we both know. So congratulations, Artemis, you found the perfect way to troll the troll."

She started laughing for a few seconds before saying, "To quote my daughter; 'he's easy to troll'."

He leaned back in his chair and smiled before saying, "I think everyone is easy for her to troll, and I have a message from Bats."

"And just what might that be?" she asked.

"Kara is banned from hustling." he replied before they heard the bell ring.

"Who did she get now?" she asked with a sigh.

"Nobody," he said smiling, "Barry found footage of when she got Bruce and showed Wally; who went and broadcast it all over Watchtower."

She sat there quietly for a few seconds before asking, "Dick was involved with that wasn't he?"

"Just like old times." he said before he started laughing.

"As glad as I am those two can prank each other again, I honestly hope Kara never makes a friend like that." she said as they heard the bell ring.

"What's wrong with that?" he asked a little surprised.

"You really want mine and Wally's daughter to find her own version of Dick?" she said smiling a little.

"Oh dear god no." he said with a slight shutter as her students entered the room.

Once all the students were in their seats, Artemis resumed class, and true to her word, she had threatened to send Clark to the principal's office several times. After about the fourth threat, Clark started participating and now saw why Artemis' class did so well on the tests.


	29. Chapter Twenty-Nine: The Question

Chapter Twenty-Nine

The Question...

For the first time in what felt like forever, some of the male members of both the team and League were at Artemis's place for poker night. The last time this had happened was prior to the Reach invasion. Yet there was one thing that was different for normally the other members of the original team would show up. But unfortunately Kaldur wasn't able to come do to an emergency in Atlantis so the last person that any of them expected showed up as the fifth player. As the five males sat down to play, it was Kara that asked one question that caused a slight debate for a few minutes.

"Are they sure Mr. Wayne knows how to play?" the young girl had asked looking at her mother.

"Trust us, Kara, Bruce knows how to play." Roy said glancing at his niece.

"From what I've heard, he doesn't play that often because everyone usually tries to make him lose." Conner stated.

"You also suck at this game." Roy muttered under his breathe.

"Say's the man that can't figure out the Crock family tell and is MARRIED to a Crock." Wally said with a smirk.

"Oh and you can?" Roy asked looking at the speedster.

"Nope," Wally said as he smiled while looking at the redheaded archer, "Trying to figure it out is half the fun."

"Good answer, Wally." Artemis said from where she and Kara were sitting in the living room.

"Why don't you join us for a hand, Artemis?" Bruce asked.

"Thanks, but no thanks Bruce," she said looking over at him, "It wouldn't be fair if I played."

"Sounds like someone is afraid that her family's tell will be found out." Roy said with smug smile.

"Maybe you should let Kara play to see whether or not she's inherited it." M'gann joked.

"There's an idea," he said looking over at his sister in-law, "How about you let Kara play and show off what she's learned from Jade so far?"

"My kid is too young to be playing poker, let alone to be betting." Wally said glaring at his friend.

"Only if she wants to sit in on a hand," Artemis said.

"See, even Artemis agr-wait, what?" the speedster said surprised, "You're actually agreeing to this?"

"As long as no one places a single bet…I don't see a problem with letting her play at least one hand," she said looking over at him, "But only if she wants to play and she's allowed to deal."

"I think it would be fun." Kara said quietly.

"I think I'm going to sit this hand out." Conner said getting up.

"What's wrong Con, afraid of getting your butt kicked by a little girl?" Dick teased.

The Kryptonian clone looked over at his friend and said, "Robin, Barbara and I have played cards with her before, Dick….while waiting on Artemis to arrive. They couldn't read her. The only three people that can read that little girl are her mother, aunt, and her grandmother. So this isn't about me getting my butt kicked; it's about me wanting to record her kicking your head in for posterity."

"I'm going to want a copy of this." Wally said laughingly.

"I think we all will." Zatanna said.

"She's not going to beat me." Dick said confidently.

"Is that so?" Bruce asked looking at his former ward, "Sorry to say this Dick, but I think she might be able to claim the bounty that's on your head."

"What bounty?" Wally asked.

"Dick's got a bounty on his head after winning thirty-two poker games in a row," Zatanna said Kara sat at the kitchen table, "Nobody has been able to figure out how he keeps winning."

"I think I know how he's been winning so much." Kara said as she started shuffling the cards.

"Oh really," Dick said looking at the young girl, "So how do you think I've been winning so much?"

"You'll see." she said. She continued to shuffle the cards for another minute before dealing each person five. After the last card was dealt, she straightened her cards up so they were in a small stack and covered them with her hands.

"You're not going to look at your hand?" Roy asked watching his niece.

"Nope." she said with a straight face looking.

"Oh I know that look." Wally said looking up from his cards.

"Oh yeah," Roy said in agreement.

"Unless you want her to reveal exactly how you keep winning, I suggest you fold Dick." Conner said as M'gann and the others came over to watch.

"He won't fold," Kara said looking at the former team leader, "Because if he does, then he knows I'm right."

"That's because no one is going to fold or ask for a new card." Artemis said with a smile.

"If I can prove how Less has been winning, then dad has to ask the question." Kara said.

"You haven't asked that yet?" Roy asked looking at the speedster in shock.

"Been a little busy, Roy." Wally said.

"Doing what, Wally?" the archer asked.

"Being a dad and working," Kara said turning her gaze towards Dick, "You're move, Less."

"Someone's confident." he said watching her.

"You're an easy read." she said showing no emotion.

"And what makes you say that?" he asked.

"You let your sunglasses slide down your nose slightly after each deal and push them up when someone gets new cards," she stated evenly, "From there you smirk if you have a good hand, but fold if it's not. The reason you've been winning is that the back of each card has been marked with ink that can only be seen using either a black light or if someone has special lenses."

"You sure about that, Kara?" he asked.

"I can smell the ink and it's making me a little sick." she replied.

"Make that the two of us." M'gann said looking a little greener than usual.

"If you think I'm wrong, then put your cards down and see if your hand can beat mine." Kara said.

"Before you do that; how about we up the odds a little?" Bruce asked as his gaze shifted to each person playing, "If Kara's right; not only will she get the bounty, but I'll multiple it by her age."

"What's the bounty at now?" Artemis asked.

"It's two grand times the number of games he's won," Bruce replied, placing his cards face up on the table to reveal a full house, sevens over eights, "And I call." Wally and Roy placed their hands on the table to reveal each had a full house as well.

"Oh this is interesting," Zatanna said looking at the cards, "Three full houses; Bruce's is sevens over eights, Wally's is sixes over fives, and Roy has ten's over jacks."

All eyes focused on Grayson as he placed his hand on the table: queens over jacks.

"I'm right, aren't I?" Kara asked.

Dick was silent for a few seconds before saying, "Yeah, you are. How did you know?"

She turned her hand over to reveal a ten of hearts saying, "The smell from the ink. Robin showed it to me a few days ago and I about lost my lunch from that smell."

"Sorry. Didn't know," he said taking his sunglasses off, "So do you think you beat me?"

"Aunt Jade says hi." she said with a smile as she slid her hand to the side revealing four aces.

"Jade taught you how to play." he said sighing.

"Good hustle, Kara." Bruce said as he started laughing.

"Thank you," she said sinking in her seat a little.

"Wait a minute, I thought you said she wasn't supposed to hustle anymore." Dick said looking at his former mentor.

"My house, my rules, Grayson;" Artemis said standing behind her daughter, "The only time she is allowed to do this if she is allowed to play cards like this. Now…Wally, what question is our daughter talking about?"

"One I should've asked long ago," Wally said before speeding from the room for a brief second before returning. M'gann let out a small gasp as the group watched the speedster go down on one knee and take his girlfriend's hand in his. "Artemis Lian Crock, will you marry me?" he asked holding up a ring box.

"Took you long enough," the blonde said before wiping a tear from her eyes, "And yes, I will marry you." He quickly slipped a ring on her finger and pulled her into a hug as he stood up while everyone started clapping.

"About time you asked her Wally." Conner said as M'gann gave the newly engaged couple of hug.

"And I think I know something Kara could use that bounty for." Roy said with a slight smile.

"Actually, it will be going toward her college education," Bruce said with a smile, "The wedding is on me. Consider it my wedding gift to you two."

"Please tell me that it's not because you got hustled." Artemis said looking at the billionaire.

"More like Lucius' request," he replied holding his hands up, "He also invited you all to lunch next Saturday. He said he had something for you."


	30. Chapter Thirty: Lucius Fox

Chapter Thirty

Lucius Fox...

Lunch with Lucius was something that Artemis had not expected. Instead of meeting at a restaurant, Artemis and her family met at his home where he had been waiting with his niece. While she had met the man and his niece before, something she hadn't expected was that the young girl would get along with her own daughter as well as Wally and Dick got along even now. As she watched the two playing in the backyard with her fiancé, she noticed her host walk up next to her.

"Looks like they're getting along." he said smiling.

"They remind me of a certain speedster and bird we know." she said with a slight laugh as the girls tackled Wally.

"Speaking of which, I heard about the poker game," he said looking at her, "Congrats on the engagement…and Kara beating Dick, I understand her college is now paid for?"

"Yes, and thank you," she said smiling, "I do have a question though..."

"Why did I ask Bruce to cover the cost of your wedding?" he asked finishing her thought, "Actually it was my niece that asked him to do that. Ever since you saved her, she's been trying to figure out how to repay you."

"She didn't have to do that." she said with a slight smile.

"She wanted to," he said turning his attention back to the window, "Believe it or not, she considers you family because of what you did."

"So I'm Aunt Artemis to another, huh?" she asked a little surprised.

"That is the way she thinks of you," he said before holding out a small box for her, "This is for you and your family."

"What is it?" Artemis asked as she took it.

"You'll have to see." Lucius remarked.

She opened the box to find three familiar looking watches in three different colors.

"Those are specially designed versions of the wrist comps that Dick and the others use," he said as she looked at him, "They're faster, have more memory, have a built in tracker and cell phone features plus they can withstand both Wally and Kara's meta powers."

"Oh I like these," she said picked up the red watch with yellow lightning bolts, "I take it this one is Wally's."

"Whereas the green one is yours and the blue and grey one is Kara," he said with a nod, "I thought those might help so you never lose each other again."

"Thank you." she said putting the watch back in the box.

"You're welcome, now what's this I hear about someone hustling a certain Bat?" he asked.

"Ask Wally for the video," she said sighing, "Seriously, why does everyone want to see that video?"

"Besides the obvious?" he asked with a slight laugh.

"Yeah, I know…he's the freaking Batman." she said.

"He'll never tell anyone this, but he actually enjoyed how she got him," he said crossing his arms, "It reminded him he's human."

"You mean he forgets that?" she asked surprised then she smiled. "And I'm sure he tells you just about everything."

"From time to time he can forget that, and yes…well me and Alfred." he said looking towards his niece.

The two were silent for a few minutes as they looked towards the ones outside before she asked, "Does your niece know about Wally and Kara's abilities?"

"She knows about Wally's," he said before the speedster suddenly zipped off, "I wasn't going to say anything about Kara's until I talked to you about it."

"Are you two coming out to play, or not?" Wally asked as he was standing next to his fiancé after a few seconds.

"We'll be out in a few, Wally." Artemis said giving him a quick kiss.

"Ok, and the girls were wondering when's lunch and what are we having?" he asked.

"Lunch should be ready in about five minutes and my wife is fixing one of Darcy's favorite dishes with cheesecake for dessert." Lucius replied.

Artemis shared a look with her Wally before looking at Lucius and said, "That's, actually, something Kara has never had. Fair warning, she may ask if you have any blueberries to place on it."

Lucius smiled before saying, "We have blueberry topping if she wants it."

"And lunch is ready when you all are." Lucius' wife, Tanya, said as she walked up.

"I'll get the girls." Wally said before zipping outside for a brief second.

All during lunch, both families talked about different things. One of the most popular subjects seemed to be was Wally's speed. Just as dessert was about to be served, Kara let out a startled squeak as her eyes started glowing.

"You ok, sweetie?" Artemis asked looking at her daughter.

Kara squeaked again as her eyes stopped glowing before she said softly, "Hiccups."

"So that's why Jade calls you Cottontail," Wally teased looking at his daughter, "You sound like a bunny when you squeak."

"That's not why." the young girl said before she squeaked again.

"I know, Roy explained why they call you that." he said.

"Not funny, dad." she said before picking up the nearest glass, thinking it was hers, and taking a drink.

"And you better not tell why she calls her that or I will tell what happened the first time you met my mother." Artemis said in a threatening tone.

"As fun as that story sounds, I think we better keep this PG," Tanya said standing up, "Darcy, can you help me clear the table please?"

Before the girl could respond, Wally zipped around the room picking up the used plates and disappeared into the kitchen for a brief second before sitting back down in his chair.

"I wasn't sure if you prewash your dishes or not, so I gave them a quick rinse before putting them in the dishwasher." he said with a slight shrug.

"How fast are you?" Darcy asked.

"Almost as fast as the Flash." he answered.

"Then why aren't you a hero?" she asked.

"I was once," he said as he looked at his daughter and brushed her hair back, "But I retired."

"Enough talk about heroes and powers," Tanya said with a wave of her hand, "Who's up for dessert?"

"Is it possible to get it to go?" Kara asked sounding a little raspy as she put the glass down.

"Kara, are you ok?" Artemis asked looking at the young girl.

Kara shook her head before whispering, "I can't breathe."

Wally zipped out of the room and returned in less than a second handing Artemis a yellow pen.

"Is Kara ok?" Lucius asked.

"She's having an allergic reaction." Artemis said pressing the end of the pen to her daughter's neck and pressed the button on the end.

Kara let out a low sigh before leaning on her mother's shoulder and whispering, "Thank you."

"What is she allergic too?" Lucius asked worried.

"Carrots," Wally said as he picked up the glass his daughter had drank from and took a small sip, "And she grabbed the one glass that had carrot juice in it."

"Oh my god, Kara, I am so sorry. I didn't know….." Tanya said apologetically.

"It's ok, Mrs. Fox, accidents happen…" Kara said taking a deep breathe but her voice was still raspy.

"Cheesecake to go then," Tanya said as she was glad that Kara didn't seem upset and was going to be alright after getting the medicine she needed.

"Any blueberries?" Kara asked, trying to relieve the tension in the room after the whole experience.

"I'll be sure I get some blueberry sauce into a travel bowl." Tanya said.


	31. Chapter Thirty-One: Annoying

Chapter Thirty-One

Annoying...

"You need to let him go." Artemis said looking at her daughter.

"Do I have to?" the young girl asked glancing at her mother.

Following the incident at the Fox's', Wally started checking to make sure none of the food they had contained carrots. At first it was understandable, but the speedster was going to the point of having one of Kara's EpiPen's on the kitchen table as they ate dinner. The final straw had come when Kara had gotten a glass of water and he poured it down the sink before she could take a drink; which led to him being hogtied and incased in a trunk via his daughter's power.

"Will you let him go if he apologizes?" Artemis asked.

"Only if he stops hovering over me," Kara said glaring at the trunk.

"He's not going to stop worrying about you because he's your dad," the blonde said calmly, "Granted I don't think I was that bad."

"Only when it came to that one lunch lady at school the one day," Kara said smiling a little.

"And I will get Wally to back off," Artemis said as she reached over and took her daughter's hand in hers, "But you do need to let him go."

"Ok." Kara said softly as the trunk disappeared.

"That's my girl," Artemis said before looking over at her fiancé as he stood up, "You ok there, Kid Annoying?"

"Being stuck like that is not fun," Wally said stretching a little before looking at his daughter, "And I am sorry, Kara."

"Don't do it again." the young girl said leaning against her mother.

"I promise I won't," he said sitting next to her, "Guess I freaked out pretty bad, huh?"

"M'gann was worse." she said curling up on the couch.

"This happened with M'gann?" he asked surprised.

"Well….she didn't get hogtied or anything. I was running a little late one time picking her up from the Watchtower and M'gann made Kara a salad to tide her over till I got there," Artemis said wrapping an arm around their daughter, "I got there right as Kara took a bite."

"Mom asked if it had carrots in it and started to freak out when she was told yes," Kara said with a slight smile, "M'gann felt so bad when she found out about my allergy."

"I bet," he said quietly.

She looked up at her father and smiled before saying, "Thank you for watching out for me, dad."

"You're welcome, munchkin." he said before giving her a hug.

"Hey dad, did you know mom's ticklish?" Kara asked after a few seconds.

Wally leaned back and looked at his daughter and asked, "Are you sure?"

She smiled as she reached behind her and poked the back of her mother's left knee.

Artemis jumped to her feet with a startled shout and looked at the young girl saying, "I take it someone's hungry."

Wally started to smile as he asked, "You're ticklish, Artemis?"

"No, we've had this talk before Wally." she said before heading to the kitchen on to stop as Wally zipped in front of her.

"The "Talk", as you put it was me asking if you were and you threatening me with my life if I ever tried." he said as his smile widened.

"It wasn't a threat…..that was a PROMISE." she retorted as they heard someone knock on the front door.

"I got it." Kara said before heading over to the door.

"You are not tickling me, Wally." Artemis said sternly.

"Back of her left knee, small of her back, and the back of her right ear are her most ticklish spots." a familiar voice stated.

"Thanks a lot, Jade." Artemis said, looking behind her to see her sister standing at the door with her brother in-law and niece.

"Just evening the playing field, Alice," Jade said smiling, "Now, have you two figured out anything for your wedding yet?"

"Been a little busy," Artemis said before sitting back on the couch.

"Wally got on Kara's nerves after what happened at Lucius', I take it?" Roy asked.

"Who told you about that?" Wally asked surprised.

"Babs ran into Darcy's mother and they told her about what happened." Roy said sitting his daughter down.

"Artemis, what happened?" Jade asked trying to stay calm.

"Kara ended up need her pen after she accidently took a drink of carrot juice." Wally stated.

"Why did she drink carrot juice?" Jade asked.

"I had the hiccups and thought I was reaching for my orange juice," Kara said sitting next to her mother, "Dad got my pen as soon as I started to react."

"Looks like speedsters are good for something other than target practice," Jade 'purred' out before taking a seat.

"Not funny, Jade," Wally said sitting next to his fiancé, "Anyway, what brings you two here?"

Roy placed a notebook on the coffee table and said, "Dick asked me to drop that off because he's still banned from here."

"And mom said if you try to elope, I'm allowed to hunt you two down." Jade said with a smile.

"Small ceremony for family only, reception for friends," Artemis said glaring at her sister, "If we do decide to elope, that is between me and Wally."

"Oh you are not robbing mom the chance to see Kara in a dress." Jade said with a slight smile.

"Not happening." Kara said crossing her arms.

"You get shorts for under the dress." Artemis said looking at the young girl.

"I better." Kara said before helping her cousin up onto the couch.

"Either way," Roy said with a slight laugh, "I'm sure you're going to look very cute in a dress, Cottontail."

All eyes shifted to the redheaded archer as Jade said, "He'll never learn."

He gave them a puzzled look before his eyes went wide as he realized what he had said.

"Did you call me cute?" Kara asked glaring at her uncle.

"No, I said you are going to look cute in a dress." he tried to clarify.

"If you're lying," she said pointing at him, "Aunt Jade is going to look like a devout catholic by the time I finish making you pay."

"Considering what all she's done to Bart for calling her Squirt; I'd believe it," Artemis said before she watched Liam poke her daughter's cheek.

"What all has she done to him?" Wally asked sounding intrigued.

"Constructs of different items for him to run into, trip over, throw him across the Watchtower," Artemis said as she recalled the different things the young girl had done, "Turned him into a human paddle ball, but I think everyone's favorite was a construct Superman punching him."

"Talk about a glutton for punishment." Jade said trying not to laugh.

"Grandma Mary and Uncle Barry have banned him from coming here because of how bad he gets on my nerves." Kara said before poking her cousin in the belly.

"That and he kept stopping here every day just to see Kara," Roy said sitting in a chair, "And before you start on Kara about Bart having a crush on her, Jade, I asked him why he keeps hanging around her. It's so she doesn't try and smash Blue Beetle."

"Yeah, I heard about that," Wally said looking over at his friend, "The mace she creates can do some major damage."

"Sounds like you know from personal experience." Jade said looking at the speedster.

"I'll tell you when you're younger than your sister." he said leaning back against the couch.

"I've hit three people with my mace so far," Kara said before getting poked again, "Why is she poking me?"

"She wants to play and she's missed you." Roy said simply.

"I've missed her too." she said tickling her cousin a little.

Lain let out a squeal of laughter before Artemis asked, "Anyway, now that I think about it, didn't you elope Jade?"

"What I did has nothing to do with you," Jade said leaning back against the chair, "And I have a feeling that you want to see Kara in a junior bridesmaid dress as much as mom and I do."

"Oh we do and can think of a few others that would probably want to see her like that as well," Wally said.

"But the only ones that will see Kara like that will be family." Artemis said before picking up the notebook, "I've already talked to mom about that and she likes the idea."

"If I wear one, then mom has to wear a dress." Kara said lifting her cousin up onto her lap.

"Oh that's a given, Cottontail," Roy said looking at his sister in-law with an evil grin, "And there are at least twelve women that I can think of that will make sure she's in one that day."

"Twelve?" Artemis asked a little surprised.

"Dinah, Diana, Shayera, M'gann, Zatanna, Raquel, Karen, Cassie, Barbara, Jade, your mother, and Mary," he replied.

"Don't forget me and Aunt Iris." Kara said bumping into her mother.

"That's thirteen minus you, Cottontail, which means there are that many that want to see you in a dress too." Jade said with a knowing smile.

The young girls eyes widened for a brief second before she muttered, "I hate weddings."

The adults all laughed, but Lian wasn't going to let her cousin off so easily as Kara started to slip off the couch. With that, Kara stayed to play with Lian and they had a wonderful time during the visit.


	32. Chapter Thirty-Two: The Boys Are Back

Chapter Thirty-Two

The Boys Are Back...

True to his word, Bruce Wayne covered the entire cost of the wedding. It did surprise him that the final cost of the wedding itself was a small fraction of what the reception cost. Yet leading up to the special day, Artemis seemed to be on edge. As if she was afraid of something. Even after the I do's had been said, she still seemed bothered. It wasn't until she was on her way to the reception location in the back of a limo with Wally and Kara that she finally put a voice to what was bothering her, but her fears disappeared with one simple question.

As the family entered the reception hall, a few people noticed that the former archer seemed to be in a better mood as compared to the last time they saw her.

"What's got you in a better mood?" M'gann asked mentally.

"Remember how I told you about that coma dream?" Artemis replied glancing at her friend, "It ended at my wedding which was on the anniversary of when we lost Wally."

"Yeah, I remember." M'gann replied.

"That day was a month ago." Artemis said licking the end of her finger and sticking it in her husband's ear.

"What the… Artemis?" he yelled looking at her.

"You're cute when you're flustered." she giggled.

He leaned away from her slightly before Kara suddenly latched onto her father's arm smiling.

"Looks like someone else is happy," Artemis said looking at her daughter, "So what did you do to Bart this time?"

"It wasn't Bart I got this time." Kara said with a delightful giggle.

"Who'd you get?" Wally asked.

"Uncle Roy." she said.

"How did you get your uncle and what was on the line?" Artemis asked, a little intrigued.

"I bet him I could talk Aunt Jade into playing the hero for a week against a favor Dad and Less owe him that dad wouldn't pass out during your wedding." the young girl said holding up a yellow piece of paper.

"I thought Roy had already used that thing." Wally muttered staring at the paper.

"He said he hadn't found anything to use it for," Kara said as she shrugged her shoulders…..started to grin evilly, "But I thought of something."

"You did?" he asked nervously.

She nodded as Dick walked over and asked, "You're really going to make us do this, Kara?"

"You haven't apologized to mom yet, so yes." she said looking at him.

"Kara, what are you up to?" Artemis asked looking at her daughter.

"I'm just going to have Dad and Less dance for everyone to their favorite song." Kara giggled.

"No offense, Kara, but Wally and I have totally different taste in music." Dick said.

She looked at her father's friend before smirking, "Not according to a video that Barbara showed me."

"She didn't…" Dick said as all the color drained from his face.

"She did," Wally said sighing, "Why do you constantly piss her off?"

"It's not my fault she's hot when she's mad." Dick replied before he felt a hand on his shoulder, "Hi Babs."

"Hi guys, let's go." Barbara said smiling wickedly.

"I hate you, Dick," Wally said as he stood up, "I really hate you."

The two walked to the middle of the dance floor as the DJ announced, "I'd like to thank everyone for coming to the reception for Wally and Artemis West. Now if you all would please turn your attention to the dance floor; we have a special treat for everyone here. It seems our lucky groom, Wally West, was convinced to do a special dance number with his best man, Dick Grayson. So ladies and gentleman; please enjoy their version of 'The Boys Are Back' from High School Musical 3."

"I really hate you right now." Wally said as the two walked to the middle of the dance floor.

"I just hope this doesn't end up on Youtube." Dick said as the music started.

Artemis placed her hands over her mouth as she tried not to laugh while watching her new husband and muttered, "This is so wrong."

"Less asked for it." Kara giggled.

The reception hall erupted with applause and laughter once the song finally came to an end.

After taking a few bows, the two walked back to their seats as Wally said, "Apologize to Artemis or Kara will continue to do this type of stuff to you."

"Oh he already apologized to mom," Kara said as the two sat down, "That's was because he said you were going to be late today, dad."

Wally laughed as he lifted his daughter up onto his lap and said, "Ok, new rule. Do not make my daughter mad."

"Got it," Dick said before taking a seat.

The event seemed to take a lighter feel for the rest of the evening, yet there was something a little off.

"Artemis, are you sure you're ok?" M'gann asked via the link, "You're looking a little green…and I should know about looking green."

"Just a little nauseous, that's all." Artemis replied after a few seconds.

"That and mom was complaining about her dress being a little tight this morning," Kara chirped in, and both adults were shocked as M'gann had linked up with BOTH of the West girls, "Granted she wasn't happy about not seeing that thing change before we left for the wedding."

"What thing?" M'gann asked.

"Don't worry about it." Artemis quickly said before getting up.

"Kara, could you come with me please?" she asked out loud.

"Sure mom," the young girl said. The two went into the main hallway and down to the bathroom for some privacy.

Once they were inside, Artemis looked at her daughter and asked, "Kara, out of curiosity, did you see what that thing changed to?"

"No, but I did take a picture of it so you could see what it changed to." the young girl said pulling out her phone. She brought the photo up and showed her mother the image. Artemis slowly took the phone from Kara as her eyes went wide.

"Do you know what it means, mom?" Kara asked a little worried.

"Actually sweetie, I do," Artemis said pulling her daughter over so she could see the screen, "You see those two lines there? Well that means that in about nine months, you're going to be a big sister."

Kara looked at her mother and asked, "I'm going to be a big sister?"

"Yeah, but you can't tell your father yet, ok?" Artemis said smiling, "I want to wait till we're home before we tell him."

"Do you have to?" Kara asked quietly.

"Kara, what's wrong?" her mother asked turning the young girl so she was facing her.

"I don't want to be a big sister," the young girl said, trying not to cry.

Artemis wrapped her arms around her daughter and held her close as she said, "Oh sweetie, do you think we're going to give you up for another baby? We would never do that. You're our daughter and we love you dearly. You becoming a big sister just means that our family is growing."

"You're not going to get rid of me?" Kara asked sniffing back her tears.

"Never," Artemis said wiping her daughters tear away, "Because a very incredible person taught me that love, like family, grows as it knows no bounds."

"Who taught you that?" Kara asked.

Artemis smiled as she brushed her daughter's hair back saying, "You did when you entered my life."

Kara smiled brightly as she hugged her mother tight saying, "Thanks mom. Um, do you think it would be ok if I told one person?"

"Depends on who you tell," Artemis said tapping her daughter on the nose.

"Aunt Zee." Kara said almost instantly.

"As long as Zee doesn't tell anyone, I don't see why not." her mother said as the magician in question entered the room.

"There you two are," Zatanna said looking at the two, "M'gann said you weren't feeling to well."

"I'm fine, Zee, but Kara has something she wants to tell you." Artemis said before giving her daughter a slight nod, "Go ahead."

Kara looked at her honorary aunt and said, "You can't tell anyone this, especially dad."

"Ok, I promise I won't tell Wally or M'gann…seeing as she can slip up at times." Zatanna said knelling in front of her adoptive niece.

Kara looked back at her mother briefly before turning towards her friend with an excited grin before saying, "Mom says in about nine months I'm going to be a big sister."

"Wally is going to freak when he finds out," the magician said after a few seconds, "And you are going to an amazing big sister."


	33. Epilogue: Nine months later

Epilogue

Nine months later...

"SOMEBODY HELP!" Bart yelled as he ran through the Watchtower.

"I don't think I want to know what he did." Diana said with a sigh.

"This is making me wonder who he made mad." Aquaman said as the speedster sudden ducked behind him.

"Do you even have to ask?" she said as she saw the reason for Bart's fear walking towards them, "What did he this time, Kara?"

A hard light battle axe formed in the young girl's hand before she said, "He woke Nicky up."

"I didn't mean too." Bart said sticking his head out.

"And I'm Mary, queen of Scots. Does it look like I care?" she said before throwing the axe at him.

A red streak shot past her and grabbed the axe an inch before it hit Bart's face.

"That's enough Kara," Barry said looking at her, "Find Barbara and have her take you back to the hospital. I'll deal with Bart."

"Pray that I don't find Aunt Jade….Target Practice." the young girl said before walking off and the league members laughed at Bart's nickname from Kara.

The axe disappeared as Aquaman asked, "Barry, would you mind telling us what's going on; and just who is Nicky?"

"Nicky is her little brother," Bart said stepping out from behind the Atlantean king, "….and I inadvertently yelled when I saw him this morning."

"Artemis had her baby?" Diana asked surprised.

"Babies," Barry said looking at her with a smile on his face, "She had twins."

"Twins?" the Amazonian and Atlantean asked together.

"Nicholas Brendon and Alissa Jennifer West, nine lbs. seven ounces each." Bart answered.

"Uh Bart, that's not what they named them." Barry said looking at his protégé.

"What are you talking about, Gramps?" Bart asked looking at his mentor, "Those names are right."

"Not after you let them slip a few weeks back," Barry said smiling, "It's Nicholas Marcus and Reina Melissa West. Wally text me the names shortly after the kids were born."

"He got something wrong?" Aquaman asked with a slight laugh, "Bart actually got something wrong?"

"Other than Conner winning that bet, I'm happy that Artemis had her babies," Diana said giving her fellow leaguer a sideways glance, "How's Kara been handling it?"

"If her trying to take Bart's head off is any indication, she's both excited to be an older sister and going to be very protective of them." Barry stated

"You expected her to be anything less?" Diana said smiling.

End...


End file.
